Last night, Ryan Howard put the Phillies ahead for good in a no-pitching, back and forth game v. the Braves. Facing Atlanta's closer w/ 1 on, 2 outs, in the 8th, he launched an opposite field homer.
It was his 8th homer in 12 games thus far in September. He has something like 22 RBIs in those games, and is hitting .400. As a direct result, the Phillies have made up a 3 game deficit and now sit atop the NL East.
Rhino struggles every spring, and comes to life as the weather heats up. Then he struggles again a bit when it gets REALLY hot, then mashes again as September arrives and the air cools. This is not news, and he's hardly alone among oversized sluggers in this regard.
Still, it's awesome to watch him when he's this locked in. Many are calling for MVP consideration. To them I say, STFU, you idiots. He's got 45 HR and 138 RBI, which would be convincing if he weren't OBPing about .330 and OPSing more than 200 points below the mark he set two years ago, when he won the MVP. His .873 OPS is pretty close to average for a 1B (I think), and nowhere near what you'd want to see out of an MVP 1B who sports a glove made of granite. Those counting stats are more due to his position as cleanup hitter on one of the best offesive teams in baseball (Phils are 2nd in runs scored in the NL, trailing the Cubs).
So yes, Rhino's hitting better than anyone in the world right now. Be glad for that, Philly, and be glad that yet again the city is poised to be electrified by a race October. Leave the MVP talk for fans with nothing more important to care about.
Final thought - why the hell would ANYONE pitch to Rhino in the situation above? Or really, ever?
Pat the Bat's OPS in September = .569! August = .618
Rhino in September = 1.448.
Final thought- Rhino's a classic three true outcomes player (as is Pat)... HR, K, or BB. What would the three true outcomes of drinking be?
I'll go with Sex, Vomit, Pass Out. The first is awesome, and worthy of celebration (HR), the second is horrible and worthy of scorn and derision (K), and the third is sort of neutral - you're boring, but at least you're not hurting the cause.
It was his 8th homer in 12 games thus far in September. He has something like 22 RBIs in those games, and is hitting .400. As a direct result, the Phillies have made up a 3 game deficit and now sit atop the NL East.
Rhino struggles every spring, and comes to life as the weather heats up. Then he struggles again a bit when it gets REALLY hot, then mashes again as September arrives and the air cools. This is not news, and he's hardly alone among oversized sluggers in this regard.
Still, it's awesome to watch him when he's this locked in. Many are calling for MVP consideration. To them I say, STFU, you idiots. He's got 45 HR and 138 RBI, which would be convincing if he weren't OBPing about .330 and OPSing more than 200 points below the mark he set two years ago, when he won the MVP. His .873 OPS is pretty close to average for a 1B (I think), and nowhere near what you'd want to see out of an MVP 1B who sports a glove made of granite. Those counting stats are more due to his position as cleanup hitter on one of the best offesive teams in baseball (Phils are 2nd in runs scored in the NL, trailing the Cubs).
So yes, Rhino's hitting better than anyone in the world right now. Be glad for that, Philly, and be glad that yet again the city is poised to be electrified by a race October. Leave the MVP talk for fans with nothing more important to care about.
Final thought - why the hell would ANYONE pitch to Rhino in the situation above? Or really, ever?
Pat the Bat's OPS in September = .569! August = .618
Rhino in September = 1.448.
Final thought- Rhino's a classic three true outcomes player (as is Pat)... HR, K, or BB. What would the three true outcomes of drinking be?
I'll go with Sex, Vomit, Pass Out. The first is awesome, and worthy of celebration (HR), the second is horrible and worthy of scorn and derision (K), and the third is sort of neutral - you're boring, but at least you're not hurting the cause.
posted by Alex at
12:58 PM
2 Comments:
I'm not sure my TTO analogy works- Sex, unlike a true outcome, requires collaboration with another player. But I'm not sure I'm ready to find a drinking alone scenario that equates to a HR.
Discuss.
By
Alex, at 1:17 PM
The HR outcome would be drinking ALL available alcohol. It would be something along the lines of finishing the bottle, kicking the keg, emptying the fridge, and so forth. Cooperation wouldn't be a requirement in the same sense as it would be for sex... it's a collective effort towards you, personally, having no booze available to you anymore. It's both a collective and a personal state.
What other things can we apply TTO to? For example, "opening up lemonparty.org by accident" has laughter, horror, and erection as its three outcomes.
By
Jeff, at 2:29 PM
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