How to Construct a Championship Caliber Core

   Some teams are undoubtably under a lot of pressure to win, and whether the pressure comes from a new owner, a TV deal, or simply need more money, a good way to get started is to build up your core (group of four or five players that are the force behind your team). Here are the essentials to build a great start for any team.
 
1. The Outfielder(s):
   The Outfielder(s) are going to be your main offensive catalysts. While normally there is only one, some teams, like the Giants, have two (Angel Pagan and Hunter Pence). These will either hit third or fourth in your lineup, and will knock in most of your runs (ex. Mike Trout and Bryce Harper). The Outfielder often be your "franchise player" have the most merchandise in his name, as he will be the most recognizable.

2. The Pitcher:
    The Pitcher is your ace, your bulldog, and will be the one you most want with the ball in their hands when the game is on the line. Everyone knows that good starting pitching is the foundation for success, but an ace is the foundation for good starting pitching.

3. The Infielder(s):
    There can be two kinds of infielders, and most teams do have both. A leadoff hitter who does whatever he can to get on base, and then steals the next one will often play in the middle infield. Players like Jose Altuve, Xander Bogarts, and Accedes Escobar are all great examples of this piece of a teams core, and are all leadoff hitters. The other aspect of the infielder part of the core is the corner infield. Essentially acting as a slower version of an outfielder, corner infielders include Paul Goldschmidt, Corey Seager, Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Eric Hosmer, Joey Votto, and Matt Duffy.

4. The Catcher:
    Every team has a catcher, some are even pretty good, but very few have the essential skills to be part of a teams core. They need to be a leader, and a great team player. They need to know how to work with and mentor pitchers. Some catchers that are a core part of their team are Yadier Molina, Buster Posey, and.... I honestly can't think of anymore. Core catchers are so rare.

5. The Closer:
    While the closer is not essential, it helps to have someone you trust out there at the back of the bullpen. You can have a good closer, but one who is part of your core is someone who is consistent for a couple of years at a time, and is young. Old relievers burn out after a couple of months.

 

The Meaningless of Spring Training Results

    Until the regular season starts and statistics matter, I think I'm going to stick to rant about how certain extra functions in America's pastime are stupid.
    Spring training is halfway through! As always, the "experts" are bursting to the seems with meaninglessness like "Jason Hayward isn't hitting as well as he should, the Cubs are done for the year." As baseball is moving into a more saber metrical phase statistics seem more and more important. Not just the important ones either. I'll give you five dollars if you can tell me what WAR, OPS, or BABIP is. That is all fine, it gives a more sophisticated approach to the game. But when the players have only been hitting for two weeks, statistics might just stress them out. A great example: Clayton Kershaw had a ERA over four in the spring training of 2014, but he went on to have one of the most dominant seasons in the past decade. If a rookie is playing with the team for the first time in spring training and he isn't doing so well, broadcasting all over the news isn't going to help. In fact, statistics often aren't what coaches are looking for in these younger guys. They're looking for how they adjust to MLB pitching, so why bother stressing them out? It doesn't help anyone, and the stats are often meaningless. It's okay to collect stats, but don't make such a big deal. Som,ones career might depend on it.

The Meaninglessness of Pre-Seaon Predictions

    Spring training is under way! In less than a month, the baseball season will begin, and all of the predictions made by the "experts" will come true, right? In actuality, the predictions are meaningless. They just pick whoever made the flashiest deal or pick up and bandwagon on them, to try and make people think they will win. Because more people will go to games if their team is "destined" to go to the World Series, the "experts" often just pick the team that needs a financial boost, or to encourage teams to spend more money. This would be fine, making more teams spend money, but most of the time they're wrong, which can hurt the financials of the teams that aren't predicted to win. In fact, "destined" teams have only won once in the past decade, in 2009. Other than that, most have just been a sort of advertisement to teams. "Hey, spend more money and we'll tell your fans you're destined to win. Never mind your team probably  won't make the playoffs because you just spent the most amount of money possible! You'll "make" that money right back off a more deserving team. Another example: Hey did anyone enjoy that Dodgers-Mariners World Series? No? What about the secondary choice, the Nationals-Indians Fall Classic? What! Only one of those teams made the playoffs? What! What about the thrilling seven-game NLCS between the Padres and Dodgers? What! The Padres were barely over 500? Ridiculous! The Royals won? I knew it. The Cubs signed two people! They automatically win! No one else should even bother playing!
    If you don't understand what the problem is by now, you should read my other blogs. And all my classmates!