Baseball Statistics

The student has surpassed the teacher, so to speak.

Thirty-five-year-old Jed Hoyer is to be named the newest general manager for the San Diego Padres, replacing Kevin Towers who has held the position for the past 14 seasons.

The Padres were not expected to make a formal announcement over the weekend. Jeff Moorad, the newest Padres chief executive, did inform Towers that he would not be returning for the 2010 season.

One big factor that one has to accept, is that San Diego is not Boston. You do not have the luxury and the amenities that the Red Sox have.

As I was watching the Mets painful debacle yesterday, I couldn't help but notice just how bad this team is with runners in scoring position.

I have yet to find a statistic that reflects just how bad this team is when they have runners in scoring position, especially late in games.

But trust me folks, it's ugly.

Often times, the difference between a playoff team and a .500 team is how many games each wins and loses in the middle innings.

When the skipper lurches out of the dugout to relieve his starter, it's those six to nine outs to close out games that are the hardest to consistently secure. Playoff teams have guys who can bridge the gap from starter to closer, while average teams often find ways to let other squads back in the game.

Those looking for this year's Josh Hamilton—a breakout slugger—look no further than teammate Nelson Cruz. Nelson, who will turn 29 this season, has made a career in the minor leagues.

He capped off his minor career last season with a bang; a bang which included blasting 37 home runs and batting in 99 runs, not to mention a .342 batting average. Last year's spectacular performance in triple-A earned him the Pacific Coast League MVP award.

Nelson's triple-A contract with Oklahoma was bought out on Aug. 25, 2008.

This list was made after extensive research into the stats I believed to be the most important when it came to pitchers. I took a list of close to 200 candidates and looked at their career totals in Wins, ERA, WHIP, Saves, and Strikeouts. I then ranked each player in each of those categories. After that I looked at what they averaged in those stats per year. This ensures that we are looking at quality along with quantity. Next I weighted each stat accordingly, because lets face it, a save isn't as important as a win.