As we enter the back end of the MLB season, we can take some time to recognize the imperfect seasons by some individuals and teams by handing out 10 FSPY’s (Failure in Sports Performance Yearly awards).
Jim Joyce Award
This is an opinion-based award given to the worst call, when it comes to signing a player, by a team. This year’s recipient is the Chicago White Sox for their acquisition of Adam Dunn. This was a lopsided vote as Dunn is batting .158 on the season, managing only 45 hits in his 82 games played. He has never “achieved” the 200K plateau in his career before, but is on pace for roughly 230 strikeouts in his first year on the South side. Through July 22nd, 43.7% of Dunn’s at bats have resulted in a slow walk back to the dug out. That’s 43.7% of all at bats, not just at bats resulting in an out! It may be even more astounding that the slugger is averaging only 4.4 pitches per at bat, meaning he has wasted no time in striking out. His average has always been a weakness, but never has it been this bad. As a career .245 hitter, he would need to hit .335 for the remainder of the season to reach that average. Not exactly what the Sox had in mind for their cleanup hitter when they signed him.
Jim Rice Award
This FSPY is named to honor the owner of the top 2 seasons when it comes to double plays. In 1984 Rice grounded into 36 double plays, the most we have ever seen in one season. The next season, he grounded into 35, in only 140 games. That is good for 2nd all time for GIDP in a season, along with the highest rate of GIDP per game in the history of baseball (minimum 140 games). From one hall of famer to another, this year’s “winner” is Albert Pujols. Through 84 games in 2011, Pujols has grounded into 22 twin killings. He clearly had his mind set on this record, as he grounded into 3 on opening day. His current rate of .262 double plays per game would surpass Rice’s GIDP rate of 1985. As the Cardinals struggle to get runners on base at the top of the lineup, his struggles have been even more magnified and disappointing.
Hughie Jennings Award
Very few people have ever heard of this player, but the medics knew his name. The first baseman holds 3 of the top 4 single season marks for HBP. Those 3 seasons all came in succession from 1896-1898. During his most “successful” season, he was plunked once every 11.8 at bats. Never a great hitter, Jennings was just routinely in the wrong place at the right time. Carlos Quentin is this year’s winner as he has been hit by more pitches than any other major leaguer. He is the runaway winner as he leads the MLB with 20 HBP. Second place, Danny Espinosa, trails by 5 HBP, despite having 30 more at bats than CQ. Quentin has been hit once every 19 at bats, so Hughie’s mark of 1:11.8 is safe. Amazingly, the White Sox outfielder has avoided both the DL and suspension. So it is not as if he is a hated player that is being targeted. He fully embodies the spirit of being in the wrong place at the right time, Hughie Jennings would be proud.
Luis Castillo/Derek Jeter Award
If it’s true that chicks dig the long ball, then it is no wonder Jeter was single for so long and Castillo never awed over. Between this tandem, they hold the top 7, and 11 of the top 19, ratios of ground ball outs: air outs in a single season. This is not always a bad stat, as Castillo batted .334 in a season when leading the league in the ratio. But as the legs begin to go, the infield hits are few and far between, and this ration begins to balloon. In a unanimous decision, Derek Jeter is the 2011 winner. His current rate of 2.6 ground ball outs to every air out would place him 6th all time. Say what you will about his limited range in the field, but when the ball no longer gets in the air, and the speed is diminishing, how effective can you be? His decline is even more evident as last season (.270) and thus far in 2011 (.264) his batting average has been the lowest of any Castillo/Jeter season by a considerable amount. Therefore he is committing more outs while maintaining the high ground ball out to air out ratio: simply amazing.
Don’t Swing Award
Pitchers pitch and hitters hit. Never has that been as evident as it has been with Livan Hernandez this year for the Nats. He is tied for the league lead in sac bunts (12) with Elvis Andrus of the Rangers. Pretty impressive considering he only plays once every five days, and even on those days only steps in the batters box 2 maybe 3 times. He has become very efficient in his craft, as he only faces an average of 2.4 pitches per at bat. He has twice as many sac bunts as he does total bases, another indication of why he is bunting. The combination of successful sac bunts along with the bottom of the lineup getting on base in front of him, makes him worthy of this FSPY.
Wild Thing Award
Walks drive a manager crazy, anybody knows that. So it is difficult to imagine how Tommy “Wild Bill” Byrne made it through the 1949 season, which earned him the namesake of this award. In ’49, the Yankee lefty walked 179 batters in only 196 innings of work. That means he walked .91 batters per inning, by far the “best” of all time. And the 2011 FSPY goes to … Jonathan Sanchez of the San Fransisco Giants. Despite being sidelined for the last month, Sanchez has maintained his MLB lead in walks. He has issued 59 free passes in 89.2 innings, averaging out to .66 walks per inning. This ratio is very high in todays game, but the award will never be remaned, and “Wild Bill” has an untouchable mark.
Rick Ankiel Award
A Saint Louis Cardinal pitcher who was mercifully turned into a Kansas City Royal outfielder, Ankiel displayed a lack of control that started at comical, but quickly became dangerous. Nobody was safe when he stepped to the mound, and it was anybody’s guess as to where the ball was going. In 2011, he is playing the outfield, and seems to be more accurate from centerfield than he ever was from 60 feet 6 inches. In honor of his control issues, the Boston Red Sox as a team, will be taking home this award. They have hit 55 batters thus far, 14 more than 2nd place. Their starting rotation has 3 members in the top 10 this year in hit batsmen, followed by a reliever who also ranks top 10. John Lackey (12 hit batters) leads the majors and has been largely ineffective. The other 3 pitchers have had very good seasons, despite the occasional control problems. Jon Lester (10) ties for second while Josh Beckett (7) ties for 10th most hit batters in the MLB. Middle reliever Alfredo Aceves (8) is tied for 5th most, in far fewer innings. It is not rare for 1 of the starters to be followed by Aceves, making the wildness ever more apparent. How would you like to be a Yankees’ hitter if tempers begin to flare during the rivalry?
Lima Time Award
No anti-award ceremony is complete without a mention to the excitable Jose Lima. He wore his emotion on his sleeve and often acted out of left field, and opposing batters often knocked his pitches out of left field. In 2000, Lima posted an MLB worst slugging percentage against of .578. Five years later, he registered the 5th worst percentage with a mark of .544. Though the entertainment value is far less this year, it is Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo who wins the Lima. His 2011 slugging percentage against is .534, far and away the tops in the majors. With a second half run, he seems poised to make a run at Lima’s mark, but it’ll take some work. To do so, Arroyo will have to continue giving up long balls, as he leads the league with 26 round trippers.
Box Score Bandits Award
This is handed out to the most successful team with the least home support, in terms of attendance. Fans would rather check the box score in the newspaper with their morning coffee than attend a game. The Tampa Bay Rays were the huge favorite coming into the season, but we have an upset winner … the Cleveland Indians. The formula used to determine the winner was simple: (Total Home Attendance) /(Number of Wins). The Indians had a higher ratio than any other team, meaning they are the best team that no one bothers to go watch. The Indians routinely fill up less than half of their beautiful ball park, despite fielding a winning team. They have a narrow lead on the Oakland A’s, so the FSPY is very much up in the air as we approach the final few months.
Paris Hilton Award
From the name, it is obvious that this award is as good as it gets when you’re talking about FSPY’s. To earn the Hilton award one must be in the news on a regular basis, but never do anything right. This is quite the feat, and takes a special person to pull it off. This award isn’t annually handed out, as it is hard to be hated for everything that you do, and we don’t want to award somebody not truly worthy. In 2011, Roger Clemens fits the bill perfectly. With his perjury case, he is constantly the headline, and I’ve yet to hear a story that improves him in the eye of the public. Heck, even non baseball fans are beginning to hate this guy, who was at one time as dominant a pitcher as we have seen. But the Paris Hilton award is not about lifetime achievement, it is for one’s acts in a single year, and for your efforts in 2011, we congratulate Roger Clemens on this .. um .. honor.
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