MLB Hodgepodge

Issue: The season is almost over, anything interesting left on your plate?

Short Answer: A handful of things...

Reasoning: I'm thinking this will be my last baseball post of 2011.  See, the St. Louis Cardinals are now officially playing in the World Series, which, quite literally, makes me nauseous. [Sidenote: has anyone else noticed the epidemic going on in our world today with the severe overuse of the word "literally"?  It has become the most superfluous word in our language.  Like this: "I am literally writing a blog post right now."  Is there any reason for "literally" to be in that sentence?  No.  I think people believe it literally adds emphasis to what they are saying.  It literally just makes them sound like an idiot.  I hope you now notice it as much as I do, and it bothers you as much as it does me.  Literally.]  Anyway, if the Cardinals win I will not write a post about their improbable run into, and then through the playoffs.  They have already made history, and I couldn't care less.  My two favorite teams in baseball are the Cincinnati Reds and whoever is playing the St. Louis Cardinals.  So, a Rangers fan I shall become.  Becoming a Rangers fan is not hard for me, as I played an entire summer with Nelson Cruz when we were both members of the Kane County Cougars of the Midwest League.  He was a phenomenal player then, but I remember him as a better person.  See, there is always a bit of a rift in locker rooms between American born players and Latin born players.  Latin players speak a language American players can't understand, and it can cause some friction.  I always remember Nelson as one of the Latin players who could relate to everyone in the locker room.  He obviously had a lot in common with the Latin players, but he made it a point to relate to the American players as well.  Something tells me his fantastic attitude and love for the game led him to where he is today, i.e., ALCS MVP.

I digress.  The point to this post was to give you a few interesting tidbits, mostly about the Reds, that might make you think a bit.  Without further ado:

1. The Reds finished in 3rd place (shockingly enough, this was a disappointment in the Queen City) in 2011.  Did you realize it has now been 28 years since the Reds have finished in last place?  Yes, that says 28 years.  Doesn't seem right does it?  Where the Reds have finished in the last 28 years: 6th (zero - duh); 5th (9 - more than 25% of the time - no surprise); 4th (3); 3rd (5); 2nd (7 - probably the most shocking); 1st (4).  Yes, 1983 was the last year the Reds finished last in their division.  They were 74-88 that year, which doesn't seem like the record of a last place team.  Who has finished last in the Reds' division the last 28 years?  Pittsburgh Pirates (9 - it's nice to always have a team to make fun of); Chicago Cubs (5 - hopefully more to come); Atlanta Braves (4); Milwaukee Brewers (3); San Francisco Giants (3); San Diego Padres (2); Houston Astros (2); Los Angeles Dodgers (1 - who remembers the Braves, Giants, Padres, or Dodgers being in the Reds division??  I'm getting old.).  Here's to the Reds running this streak to 29 next year with a 2012 Central Division Championship.  With or without Votto.
2. Let's play the name association game.  What do all these names have in common: Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, Lance Cormier, Grant Balfour, and Rafeal Soriano?  They were all members of the 2010 Tampa Bay Rays.  And, not one of them was a member of the 2011 Tampa Bay Rays who made an improbable run to the playoffs (a la, the Cardinals).  The payroll of the 2010 Rays - $72.8 million.  The payroll of the 2011 Rays - $42.1 million.  This is why baseball rules.  In a division with the Yankees and Red Sox, the Rays, paying their entire team less than the Yankees paid Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez combined, won the AL Wild Card in the most dramatic way possible.  People will be talking about the 2011 Rays for centuries to come, and it is well deserved.  It would be nice if people in Tampa Bay would realize this, however.
3. It's very rare that a player is traded from the Reds and, in turn, lays an egg.  Usually, a player is traded from the Reds and, in turn, becomes an All-Star.  It just the way our luck goes.  It was nice to see a player get traded and lay the egg of all eggs this year.  Adam Dunn stinks.  That's all there is to it.  How badly?  He hit .159 this year for the Chicago White Sox.  No, he wasn't hurt.  Well, his ego may be hurting right about now.  If he had gotten 6 more at-bats, he would have qualified for the lowest batting average ever...by 20 points (Rob Deer hit .179 in 1991).  How about this gem - Adam Dunn vs. left-handed pitching this year: 6 for 94 (.064), 0 HR, 3 RBI.  I swear I'm not making this up.  One more: Adam Dunn hit below .200 every single month this year, save one - he hit a whopping .204 in May.  The only bright spot has to be the fact that he can't do any worse next year.  I think.

That's it and that's all.  Another baseball season has come and gone (sort of).  I can't wait until pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in about four months.  Go Rangers.