Congrats to the Doctor!!!

As you've probably read by now, Roy Halladay pitched a no-hitter last night against the Reds in the first game of the NLDS. It is the first post-season no-hitter since Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series. And this makes Halladay the first pitcher to throw a perfect game AND a no-hitter in the same year (albeit regular season and post-season).

So after years of playing for the Blue Jays, who had never finished higher than third place in his years in Toronto, Halladay finally makes it to postseason play.

What a way to make a debut and set the tone for the rest of the series.

Congrats, and good luck the rest of the way.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 1994 Topps #404 Jim Edmonds

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Wednesday, October 6, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 1994 Topps #404.
• Player Name, position, team: Jim Edmonds, outfielder, California Angels.
• Major League Debut: September 9, 1993.
• Last Line of Statistics: 1993 stats (Angels): 18 G, 61 AB, 5 R, 15 H, 4 2B, 1 EB, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 0 SB, .344 SLG, 23 BB, 16 SO, .246 AVG.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Angels #7th June, 1988. Bats: left, Throws: left.
• Any special information about this specific card: Edmonds' second regular Topps card (total includes regular and traded cards only). Edmonds was the Angels' "Coming Attraction" in the 1993 Topps set, and what a future he would have in the majors. But before the defensive highlights, the four All-Star Game appearances, eight gold gloves, and World Series championship, he was a future star who made his debut after spending the last two years in the Angels minor league system in Canada (playing for Edmonton and then Vancouver the following year). As he didn't have many highlights in the majors during the 1993 campaign, Topps wrote about a couple of his minor league exploits. Topps writes that Jim "enjoyed some explosive games with Vancouver in 1993, including one with 6 hits and two with 5-one of which featured 8 RBI's). Obviously he'd have many more highlights in the majors to come, and he was still at it in the 2010 season, helping the Reds win the 2010 NL Central title, the teams' first since 1995.
• Beckett value: $0.20-$0.50.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 53 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: Thursday: 1982 Topps #92. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. Hope you will be too.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

bdj610's 2010 End of Year MLB All-Star Teams...Every Team Needs a Representative

With the pitching staffs set in our last All-Star Team post, the next step is to make sure that every team gets at least one representative. I believe in the All-Star rule that every team, no matter how well or how poorly they did, has at least one person they could tag as an All-Star, based on his performance on the field. If it means that another person gets snubbed, that's sadly the way it goes. It does not matter how many spots there are on an All-Star team, someone always manages to be left out.

Now the pitching staffs from both sides locked in one representative from eight of the NL teams and eight of the AL teams, pretty much half the teams in either league. So that means in this post, I am going to name six position players in the AL, and eight in the NL.

On the American League side, the Red Sox, Tigers, Royals, Yankees, Athletics, Mariners, Rays, and Rangers, have representatives. These six players will ensure that the AL has all 14 teams represented:

• OF Nick Markakis, Orioles (.297, 12 HR's, 60 RBI's)
• 1B Paul Konerko, White Sox (.312, 39 HR's, 111 RBI's)
• OF Shin-Soo Choo, Indians (.300, 22 HR's, 90 RBI's)
• OF Torii Hunter, Angels (.281, 23 HR's, 90 RBI's)
• C Joe Mauer, Twins (.327, 9 HR's, 75 RBI's)
• OF Jose Bautista, Blue Jays (.260, 54 HR's, 124 RBI's)

Because I have nine outfield spots on each side, I have noticed that many players who wind up being the only person on their team to make the list normally is an outfielder. And that might be the case here with these AL picks as now four of the slots are filled.

In the NL, the Braves, Cubs, Rockies, Marlins, Phillies, Cardinals, Padres, and Giants have representatives. These eight players will ensure that the NL has all 16 teams represented:

• OF Justin Upton, Diamondbacks (.273, 17 HR's, 69 RBI's)
• 1B Joey Votto, Reds (.324, 37 HR's, 113 RBI's)
• OF Hunter Pence, Astros (.282, 25 HR's, 91 RBI's)
• OF Andre Ethier, Dodgers (.292, 23 HR's, 82 RBI's)
• OF Ryan Braun, Brewers (.304, 25 HR's, 103 RBI's)
• 3B David Wright, Mets (.283, 29 HR's, 103 RBI's)
• OF Andrew McCutchen, Pirates (.286, 16 HR's, 56 RBI's)
• 3B Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals (.307, 25 HR's, 85 RBI's)

As mentioned with the AL, it is usually the outfield positions that fill up quickly. And that is certainly the case here as five of the nine spots have been filled. That leaves only four spots to fill, and there are a lot of deserving outfielders that could easily take their place here.

Now before you start to say, "Where's this guy?" or, "Why didn't my guy make the team?" Please keep in mind that I'm not done filling out the team. These 14 guys are only here so that all 30 teams have a player. The best (trust me) is still yet to come.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2002 Topps #142 Jimmy Haynes

Thanks to the Topps Card Randomizer, introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Tuesday, October 5, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2002 Topps #142.
• Player Name, position, team: Jimmy Haynes, pitcher, Milwaukee Brewers.
• Major League Debut: September 13, 1995.
• Last Line of Statistics: 2001 stats (Brewers): 31 G, 172.2 IP, 8-17, 98 R, 93 ER, 112 SO, 78 BB, 29 GS, 0 CG, 0 SHO, 0 SV, 4.85 ERA.
• Any special information about player: Drafted by the Orioles #7th, June 1991). Traded by the Athletics to the Brewers 12/13/1999. Bats: right, Throws: right.
• Any special information about this specific card: Haynes' fifth regular Topps card (totals include regular and traded cards only). I've already shared enough about what I think of the 2002 set (worst design of the decade), so I'll just skip the hostilities. Jimmy Haynes joined the Brewers starting rotation in 2000 and became the Brew Crew's ace (or at least the team's most durable arm). The following year wasn't much better. With an 8-17 record, and an ERA just hovering below 5, he wasn't getting a lot of help from a team that had crashed downwards with a 68-94 record. The blurb on the back did mention that in May 2001, Jimmy "found his zone. After holding the Phillies scoreless for eight innings, he shut out St. Louis for 7 2/3 in his next start." He rebounded rather nicely when signed with the Reds as a free agent the following year. He was last seen in the majors in 2004, but played in both the Tigers and Devil Rays organizations before calling it a career in 2005.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.07-$0.20.
• How many cards of this player do I own?: 8 cards.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1994 Topps #404. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. We're looking back at a card from 1994 here on the blog tomorrow.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

bdj610's 2010 End of Year MLB All-Star Teams...The Starting Pitchers

Yesterday, I named the bullpens for each of my End of the Year All-Star Teams. Now it's time to name the starters.

To recap, here is my American League relief corps:

• Daniel Bard, Red Sox
• Neftali Feliz, Rangers
• Mariano Rivera, Yankees
• Joakim Soria, Royals
• Rafael Soriano, Rays

and the National League bullpen:

• Mike Adams, Padres
• Heath Bell, Padres
• Carlos Marmol, Cubs
• Billy Wagner, Braves
• Brian Wilson, Giants

So, who would they be relieving???

Starting with the American League six-man rotation, we have (in alphabetical order):

• Trevor Cahill, Athletics (18-8. 2.97 ERA, 118 K's)
• Felix Hernandez, Mariners (13-12, 2.27 ERA, 232 K's)
• Jon Lester, Red Sox (19-9. 3.25 ERA, 225 K's)
• David Price, Rays (19-6, 2.72 ERA, 188 K's)
• CC Sabathia, Yankees (21-7, 3.18 ERA, 197 K's)
• Justin Verlander, Tigers (18-9, 3.37 ERA, 219 K's)

Honorable mentions go out to (meaning, if I had more space, I'd would have added) Clay Buchholz (17-7, 2.33, 120 K's), Ervin Santana (17-10, 3.92, 169 K's), Phil Hughes (18-8, 4.19, 146 K's), Carl Pavano (17-11, 3.75, 117 K's), Cliff Lee (12-9, 3.18, 185 K's), and probably the toughest cut to make, since he and King Felix had totally similar numbers, Jered Weaver (13-12, 3.01, 151 K's). This starting rotation screams dominant. I could have plugged any of the honorable mentions onto this rotation, and it probably wouldn't miss a beat.

In the National League, my All-Star six man rotation includes:

• Roy Halladay, Phillies (21-10, 2.44 ERA, 219 K's)
• Tim Hudson, Braves (17-9, 2.83 ERA, 139 K's)
• Ubaldo Jimenez, Rockies (19-8, 2.88 ERA, 214 K's)
• Josh Johnson, Marlins (11-6, 2.30 ERA, 186 K's)
• Tim Lincecum, Giants (16-10, 3.43 ERA, 231 K's)
• Adam Wainwright, Cardinals (20-11, 2.42 ERA, 213 K's)

Honorable mentions go out to Chris Carpenter (16-9, 3.32 ERA, 179 K's), Roy Oswalt (13-13, 2.76 ERA, 193 K's), Clayton Kershaw (13-10, 2.91 ERA, 212 K's), Ryan Dempster (15-12, 3.85 ERA, 208 K's), and Bronson Arroyo (17-10, 3.88 ERA, 121 K's). Imagine how powerful a team could be if they had all of these guys in one rotation. Unstoppable comes to mind.

So the pitching staffs are done. Next, we'll get to the position players. The first step is to ensure that every team has a representative, regardless of what position he plays. At this point, six AL teams and eight teams from the NL need to have a player. I have a few people in mind. Who will they be? Tune in some time tomorrow and find out.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

Random Topps Card of the Day: 2006 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH312 Team Leaders Detroit Tigers

We reset the Topps Card Randomizer to come up with seven new cards to present for this week. Introducing the Random Topps Card of the Day for Monday, October 4, 2010:

• Official Card Set Name and Card Number: 2006 Topps Updates & Highlights #UH312.
• Player Name, position, team: Jeremy Bonderman, pitcher, Detroit Tigers; Magglio Ordoñez, outfielder, Detroit Tigers.
• Special: Team Leaders: Detroit Tigers
• Any special information about this specific card: Another unique subset within the 2006 Topps Updates and Highlights set was the return of Team Leader cards, something not utilized within Topps sets since 1989. All 30 teams had a team leaders card, and they were placed in order by their finish within their respective division. In 2006, Detroit was the AL Wild Card Winner (thanks Grand Cards...I was in a bit of a rush at the library when I typed this and didn't bother to double check my work) as well as the AL pennant winner, so they were second within their division. The card features both the Tigers' pitching leader (Bonderman) and a batting leader (in this case Ordoñez) in specific categories. The front clearly shows that Bonderman led his team with a staggering 202 strikeouts in 2006. Maggs, on the other hand, led the Tigers in runs batted in with 104. The back of the card shows the top three players from the team in each category, and shows that behind Bonderman in K's were Nate Robinson (137) and Justin Verlander (124) while Craig Munroe (92) and Carlos Guillen (85) were 2nd and 3rd in the RBI department for Detroit.
• Lo-Hi Beckett value: $0.12-$0.30.

Tomorrow's card will be: 1992 Topps #142. Post will arrive at 1:00 PM CST. See you then.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama

bdj610's 2010 End of Year MLB All-Star Teams...The Relief Pitchers

As I have done every year for the last 22 years, I am going to compile lists of players for my 2010 End of the Year (or 2011 MLB) All-Star teams. If you want to know what the heck I'm talking about, please review 2008's introduction and brief history (ahem...brief???) as to why I have done this every year for the past 22 years. And while you're at it, please feel free to review the rosters of past teams, and the results of simulated games by clicking the links along the sidebar.

Quick rules on how I comprise the teams:

• Two teams, one National League League team, and one American League team
• There are 36 spots on each team (three first basemen, three second basemen, three third basemen, three shortstops, nine outfielders, three catchers, six starting pitchers, four relief pitchers/closers, one relief pitcher/set-up, and one DH-the NL spot is taken by the player with the highest average who did not make the team at any position)
• Every team gets a representative. No exceptions. If a player gets snubbed by a guy who is only there because a team needed a rep, then that's sadly the way it goes.

This is going to be a four-post process. Today, I will announce the bullpen staffs for each team.

Why start with the bullpens?

Because it's relatively simple. The top four guys with the most saves are usually guaranteed automatic spots on the teams. Emphasis on the word 'usually' though.

Last year, I started with the National League staff. This time, I'll begin with the American League. The closers on this year's AL team are:

• Rafael Soriano, Rays (3-2, 1.73, 45 saves)
• Joakim Soria, Royals (1-2, 1.78, 43 saves)
• Neftali Feliz, Rangers (4-3, 2.73, 40 saves)
• Mariano Rivera, Yankees (3-3, 1.80, 33 saves)

Now I know that both Kevin Gregg of the Blue Jays and Jonathan Papelbon of the Red Sox have more saves than Rivera (37 each), but both have ERA's that are at or more than double that of Rivera's (3.51 and 3.90 respectively), and that 1.80 ERA is tough to ignore.

The National League closers for the 2010 team are:

• Brian Wilson, Giants (3-3, 1.81, 48 saves)
• Heath Bell, Padres (6-1, 1.93, 47 saves)
• Carlos Marmol, Cubs (2-3, 2.55, 38 saves)
• Billy Wagner, Braves (7-2, 1.43, 37 saves)

Now, I know what you're already thinking. Chicago bias is allowing me to pick Marmol over Reds closer Francisco Cordero (4-3, 3.84, 40 saves). And I had thought about that myself. However, CoCo, heading into the weekend, had an ERA of 4.00 (it has since gone down to a season ending 3.84). And how can you ignore Marmol leading all relief pitchers with a staggering 138 strikeouts (that's rounds out to a ridiculous 15.99 K's per nine innings). And while you can argue that Marmol drew a league leading 52 walks for a closer, don't forget that even strikeout king Nolan Ryan is also the the all-time Walks leader too.

The AL Middle Reliever for the 2010 team will be Daniel Bard of the Red Sox. He is the 2010 AL leader in holds with 32, had a 1-2 record, sports a dazzling 1.93 ERA, and struck out 76 batters. Others considered for this role were Joaquin Benoit of the Rays, Joba Chamberlain of the Yankees, and Matt Thornton, the actual All-Star middle reliever from the White Sox.

Choosing the NL Middle Reliever for the 2010 team was a lot tougher as the competition was fierce. But in the end, I am choosing Mike Adams of the Padres. He finished the year with 37 holds, which was good for second in the NL, but also went 4-1 with an ERA of 1.76 while striking out 73 (his WHIP was a low 1.065). The competition for the one middle relief spot came from Padres teammate Luke Gregerson (league leading 40 holds), Tyler Clippard of the Nationals, and actual All-Stars Arthur Rhodes of the Reds and Hong-Chin Kuo of the Dodgers.

So right now, we've named the bullpens for each team. Who will fill out the rest of the rosters?

On Tuesday, I will name the six starting pitchers that will round out the pitching staffs on each team.

By Wednesday, every team will get a representative as I announce just some of the players who will take spots on both leagues' rosters.

And finally on Thursday, I will round out the rest of the rosters and introduce the complete National and American League teams.

Wait and see. It's going to look good I promise.

Sincerely,

JayBee Anama