Colton Cowser is a number one contender for American League Rookie of the 12 months honors, and his energy numbers are among the many explanation why. The 24-year-old Baltimore Orioles outfielder has 20 residence runs to go along with a .240/.321/.431 slash line and a 115 wRC+. San Diego’s Jackson Merrill (23) is the one rookie in both league to have left the yard extra instances.
That Cowser is clearing fences with some regularity is in some ways unsurprising. At a listed 6-foot-2, 220 kilos, his construct is that of a basher. That mentioned, his profile going ahead wasn’t fully clear when he was first featured right here at FanGraphs in February 2022. Drafted fifth general the earlier summer time out of Sam Houston State College, Cowser had propelled only a pair of baseballs over outfield obstacles in 149 low-level plate appearances. Furthermore, as I associated to him in our offseason dialog, Baseball America had lately cited his “spectacular walk-to-strikeout ratio,” including that his swing path is “presently extra geared towards contact versus energy.”
The numbers recommend that Cowser is now not the identical model of hitter. After having extra free passes than Ks in faculty and in his first style {of professional} motion, the left-handed-swinging slugger has fanned a team-worst 157 instances this season with a 30.5% strikeout fee and a 9.5% stroll fee. He’s additionally hitting extra balls within the air, as evidenced by his 38.2 FB%. That quantity was simply 26.9 in his two-plus years down on the farm.
Cowser’s ideas on making much less contact as he settles in to what guarantees to be a productive MLB profession?
“I’d wish to nonetheless be bat-to-ball,” Cowser informed me final week when the Orioles visited Fenway Park. “However I additionally wish to take my possibilities each as soon as in awhile. I don’t assume I’ve essentially tried to vary something, it’s extra that some changes have occurred right here and there.”
Requested to elaborate, Cowser defined that he’s moving into his legs higher — “that permits for extra adjustability” — and isn’t as tall in his stance. One other significant tweak, which came visiting the offseason, has been the place he positions his arms.
“They’d form of get caught again right here,” mentioned Cowser, imaginarily gripping a bat together with his arms towards the again of his left shoulder. “We made it some extent to attempt to maintain them in entrance of me. I assume technically that was a swing change, however I didn’t actually really feel prefer it was. However yeah, I feel the massive factor was holding my arms in a constant place. That’s helped enable me to sync up my legs and my higher physique.”
Which brings us again to his elevated strikeout numbers. Elevated energy is an apparent plus, however is he involved with the Ks?
“They’re the identical as ground-outs, however I do hope to dial them again,” mentioned Cowser. “I’m additionally nonetheless studying loads at this degree. Generally once I’m shifting actually effectively I feel that I can hit each pitch. In actuality, that’s not the case. Dialing them again will likely be an offseason venture for me. Proper now I’m simply making an attempt to complete robust and get by way of the yr.”
For Cowser and the Orioles, the yr might very nicely final till the tip of October. His contributions are one of many causes they’re the place they’re.
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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS
Craig Biggio went 2 for 15 in opposition to Brandon Duckworth.
Norm Siebern went 2 for 15 in opposition to Jim Duckworth.
Duke Kenworthy went 2 for 4 in opposition to Ducky Yount.
Ducky Detweiler went 2 for 7 in opposition to Carl Hubbell.
Ducky Holmes went 2 for 26 in opposition to Addie Joss.
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Tarik Skubal is 16-4 with a 2.53 ERA and a 2.54 FIP over 174 innings. Emmanuel Clase has 43 saves to go along with a 0.68 ERA and a 2.27 FIP over 66 innings. Which ones would get your AL Cy Younger Award vote?
I requested that query in a Twitter ballot earlier this week (each hurlers have since taken the mound) and the outcome was a landslide. The Detroit Tigers starter garnered a hefty 83.1% of the votes forged, whereas the Guardians nearer acquired a paltry 16.9%.
How do their respective numbers evaluate with these of 2003 NL Cy Younger Award winner Eric Gagne and runner-up Jason Schmidt? Glad you requested.
Gagne, who acquired 28 of the 32 first-place votes that yr, had 55 saves to go along with a 1.20 ERA and a 0.86 FIP over 82-and-a-third innings. Schmidt went 17-5 with a 2.34 ERA and a 2.64 FIP over 207-and-two-thirds innings.
In no way am I suggesting that 2003’s NL voting ought to have any bearing on this yr’s AL voting. It’s also price noting that two weeks stay within the present marketing campaign. These issues mentioned, I discover the comparability fascinating.
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A.J. Hinch fielded questions on Jim Leyland when the Corridor of Fame supervisor was feted at Comerica Park final month, and whereas doing so he introduced up how he enjoys discussing, after the very fact, in-game strikes with the erstwhile skipper. I requested Hinch how that dynamic sometimes performs out.
“A part of the fraternity of managers and ex-managers is figuring out that we’ve got extra data [than they do] on the time we make choices,” he replied. “We now have to clarify these choices based mostly on the outcomes. That could possibly be the dilemma final night time of sending Tarik again out at 90 pitches. There are pre-scenarios. If I take Tarik out and an implosion occurs, the questions are going to be, ‘Why didn’t I ship Tarik out?’ You ship Tarik out, he will get into bother, then I take him out… that’s the query I obtained final night time. You ship Tarik again out and he punches out three, the stadium erupts, and we come again and win that sport, the questions are completely different.
“You must sit on this chair to actually respect the dilemmas that go into choices that impression the sport, that impression the gamers. The followup conversations are far more fascinating than the questions that I’ve to reply from [the media]. And the conversations with Tarik go to an entire different degree.”
Being a fly on the wall for Hinch’s conversations with Skubal and Leyland alike could be certainly be fascinating.
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A quiz:
Which participant holds the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals franchise report for stolen bases in a single season? (A touch: he led the Detroit Tigers in steals six instances.)
The reply may be discovered under.
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NEWS NOTES
Ed Kranepool, a member of the New York Mets for the workforce’s first 18 seasons (1962-1979) died final Sunday at age 79. A primary baseman/outfielder who logged 1,419 hits, together with 119 residence runs, Kranepool performed in 1,853 video games, probably the most in franchise historical past.
Worcester Purple Sox broadcaster Tyler Murray has been employed as the brand new radio play-by-play voice of the NBA’s New York Knicks. The 34-year-old Murray is the newest in what was as soon as the Pawtucket pipeline, with Boston’s former Triple-A affiliate having graduated a baker’s dozen broadcasters — Gary Cohen, Andy Freed, and Don Orsillo are among the many notables — to MLB and the NFL The affiliate was relocated following the 2019 season.
SABR will host a stay oral historical past interview, by way of Zoom, with Ken Singleton this coming Wednesday, September 18, at 7:30 EST. Extra data may be discovered right here.
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The reply to the quiz is Ron LeFlore, who swiped 97 bases with the Expos in 1980, his solely season with Montreal. The speedy outfielder led Detroit in steals every year from 1974-1979.
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Yan Gomes was launched by the Chicago Cubs in late June and hasn’t since caught on with one other workforce. At age 37, his 13-year MLB profession might nicely be over. If that’s the case, Gomes has loads to be pleased with. Not solely has the veteran backstop performed in 1,118 big-league video games and received a World Collection ring with the Washington Nationals in 2019, he by no means had expectations of reaching the top of his occupation. When the Toronto Blue Jays chosen him within the Tenth spherical of the 2009 draft out of Miami, Florida’s Barry College, the native of São Paulo, Brazil had scant concept of what the longer term may maintain.
“It wasn’t till in all probability a yr earlier than that that I even thought I might play professional baseball,” Gomes informed me earlier this season. “I grew up in a special nation and didn’t even know what that regarded like. I got here [to the United States] once I was 12 and baseball was a sport I simply performed. I didn’t know loads about it. I didn’t know what the trajectory was purported to appear like once I obtained drafted. My first yr was within the New York-Penn League and I had no concept that’s what the stepping stones had been purported to be like.”
All these years later, is he in any respect stunned to nonetheless be taking part in?
“No,” Gomes mentioned in our late-April dialog. “It’s one thing the place you study to hold round and benefit from the sport, being grateful for the alternatives to be right here. You simply maintain working exhausting. I’m pleased with profitable a World Collection, catching some guys who received Cy Younger awards. Enjoying a very long time isn’t one thing I imagined being within the image, however doing so, and having the ability to present for my household, has been nice. This sport has handled me nicely. I’m going to maintain taking part in for so long as the sport retains calling me again.”
Whether or not one other name comes stays to be seen. Both manner, Gomes is by far the perfect of the 5 Brazilian-born gamers in MLB historical past.
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FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Taylor Hearn has made 29 reduction appearances for Hiroshima Carp and has allowed 14 hits and 4 runs over 29 innings. The 30-year-old left-hander is in his first NPB season after pitching for the Texas Rangers and, briefly, the Atlanta Braves and Kansas Metropolis Royals.
Hiroto Takahashi has allowed only one residence run this season, that to Yakult Swallows slugger Munetaka Murakami. The 22-year-old Chunichi Dragons right-hander is 12-3 with a 1.14 ERA and 125 strikeouts in 134-and-two-thirds innings.
Tokyo-based baseball scribe Jim Allen lately wrote the next in his e-newsletter about 23-year-old Orix Buffaloes southpaw Hiroya Miyagi: “Miyagi’s four-seamer on Sunday was a carbon copy of Shota Imanaga’s. Coming from a lefty with a superb splitter, changeup and curve, that fastball was a factor of magnificence.”
Norichika Aoki will reportedly retire on the finish of the season. The 42-year-old Yakult Swallows outfielder has 2,765 skilled hits, together with 1,949 in NPB and 774 in MLB.
Chris Carter has slashed .260/.399/.537 with 17 residence runs for a pair of Mexican League groups this season. The 37-year-old former A’s, Astros, Brewers, and Yankees first baseman has 488 skilled residence runs, together with 158 in MLB.
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A random obscure participant snapshot:
Miguel Diloné was a speedster who had one massive season. A switch-hitting outfielder who performed in 800 video games and had 2,000 at-bats from 1974-1985, he logged 180 of his 530 profession hits for the Cleveland Indians in 1980 whereas slashing .341/.375/.432. He additionally gathered 61 of his 267 stolen bases that yr, third-most within the junior circuit behind Rickey Henderson (100) and Willie Wilson (79). Counting his minor league numbers — Diloné had 399 thefts down on the farm — he completed his skilled profession with 666 stolen bases.
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A Dwight Evans autobiography got here out this summer time, and never surprisingly Dewey: Behind the Gold Glove (co-written by Erik Sherman) is an effective learn. An early tidbit within the e book tells how the erstwhile Boston Purple Sox stalwart obtained his nickname. It was given to him within the minor leagues by Don Lock, a former outfielder who was his supervisor within the Carolina League.
“He began calling me Dewey as a result of we had a pitcher named Don Newhauser whom he already referred to as Newey,” defined Evans, who has a superb Corridor of Fame argument. “And we had a Latin participant whom he nicknamed Louie. So, it was Newey, Louie, and Dewey.”
As readers of a sure age know, Huey, Dewey, and Louie had been the cartoon character nephews of Donald Duck.
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FARM NOTES
Daniel Flames slashed .329/.529/.400 with a 171 wRC+ over 245 plate appearances within the Dominican Summer time League. The 17-year-old shortstop was signed by the Texas Rangers out of Venezuela in February.
Nick Morabito led all New York Mets farmhands in batting common (.312), OBP (.403), wRC+ (135), and stolen bases (59). A second-round choose within the 2022 draft out of a Washington DC highschool, the 21-year-old outfielder homered 4 instances over 528 PAs between Low-A St. Lucie and Excessive-A Brooklyn.
Rikuu Nishida is slashing .304/.418/.362 with one residence run over 587 plate appearances throughout Low-A Kannapolis, Excessive-A Winston Salem, and most lately Double-A Birmingham (six video games). An Eleventh-round choose final yr out of the College of Oregon, the 23-year-old native of Osaka, Japan has swiped 49 bases.
Edgardo Henriquez has a 39.3% strikeout fee to go along with a 2.77 ERA and a 2.69 FIP over 52 innings throughout 4 ranges within the Los Angeles Dodgers system. At the moment in Triple-A. the 22-year-old right-hander missed final season after present process Tommy John surgical procedure.
Isaac Coffey is 11-4 with a 3.17 ERA, a 3.82 FIP, and a 30.0% strikeout fee over 113-and-two-thirds innings for the Double-A Portland Sea Canines. The 24-year-old right-hander within the Boston Purple Sox system has 23 HBPs, second-most within the minors.
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Matt Hicks shared a superb story right here in Sunday Notes a handful of weeks in the past. Wanting again at his days as a minor league broadcaster, the now radio voice of the Texas Rangers informed of how in 1991 a Carolina League pitcher threw a no-hitter, then gave up residence runs to the primary 4 batters he confronted in his subsequent outing.
In the present day we’ll hear from Hicks on two different video games he was behind the mic for.
“I used to be broadcasting in El Paso and we performed a sport in Midland at their previous ballpark, which was an outdated facility,” recalled Hicks. “I don’t bear in mind the precise yr — it was 1996 or 1997, or possibly 1998 — however we had been beating Midland 16-4 once they got here as much as bat within the backside of the eighth. They scored 13 runs to take a 17-16 lead., then we scored twice within the ninth to go up 18-17. We held on to win by that rating. Giving up 13 runs within the eighth and nonetheless profitable the sport was insane.”
“One other time I referred to as a sport in Corpus Christi that went 20 innings. It was 2-2 after 9 and it stayed 2-2 all the way in which to the twentieth inning. I feel the opposite workforce was Wichita. They scored 5 runs within the high of the twentieth and we misplaced 7-2. By the tip we had place gamers pitching. The pitcher for Wichita was their first baseman, who tossed two shutout innings.”
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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE
David Neft performed a major function within the creation of The Baseball Encyclopedia. John Thorn has the story in his Pioneers Collection at Our Sport.
The Athletic’s Tyler Kepner wrote about MLB’s unlucky and embarrassing determination to position an advert on batting helmets throughout the forthcoming postseason (subscription required)
MLB.com’s Michael Claire launched us to Pittsburgh Pirates pitching prospect Alessandro Ercolani, who hails from San Marino, one of many smallest nations on the planet.
The quantity 18 is critical to Japanese pitchers. Travis Sawchik defined why at The Rating.
Kiwoom Heroes nearer Seung Woo Ju is flourishing in opposition to NPB hitters due to added confidence and a brand new pitch. Jeeho Yoo wrote about the 24-year-old right-hander for the Yonhap Information Company.
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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS
Luis Arraez and Matt Olson have 627 and 625 plate appearances respectively. Arraez has 158 singles, 32 extra-base hits, and 26 strikeouts. Olson has 70 singles, 62 extra-base hits, and 159 strikeouts.
The Washington Nationals have had 23 completely different gamers steal a base this season. That’s the most for a workforce because the 1917 Pittsburgh Pirates.
Manny Machado hit his 164th residence run as a San Diego Padre earlier this week, passing Nate Colbert for probably the most in franchise historical past. An unique Padre — the enlargement membership joined the NL in 1969 — Colbert performed six seasons in San Diego and made three All-Star groups.
Not together with the franchise’s inaugural 1969 season because the Seattle Pilots, the Milwaukee Brewers have received 2,136 video games as an American League workforce and a couple of,101 video games as a Nationwide League workforce. That is is the membership’s twenty seventh season within the senior circuit. They performed 28 seasons (because the Brewers) within the junior circuit.
The Cleveland Spiders infamously went 20-134 in 1899. They’d profitable information in every of the seven earlier seasons.
In 1968, Bob Gibson had a 1.12 ERA over 304-and-two-thirds innings, and eight.6 WAR. In 1970, he had a 3.12 ERA over 294 innings, and 9.8 WAR.
On as we speak’s date in 1969, Steve Carlton fanned a career-best 19 batters however took the loss because the St. Louis Cardinals fell to the New York Mets by a rely of 4-3. Ron Swoboda’s two-run homer within the eighth inning was the distinction.
On as we speak’s date in 1977, the Kansas Metropolis Royals stretched their profitable streak to a franchise report 16 sport with a double-header sweep of the Oakland Athletics. Al Cowens’s Tenth-inning, walk-off residence run settled the nightcap.
Gamers born on as we speak’s date embody Frank Linzy, a right-hander who appeared in 516 video games and was credited with 62 wins and 110 saves whereas pitching for 4 groups, primarily the San Francisco Giants, from 1963-1974. Notable among the many Fort Gibson, Oklahoma native’s wins was a five-inning effort in reduction of one other pitcher who was born on as we speak’s date. Gaylord Perry labored the primary 16 innings because the Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds 1-0 on September 1, 1967.
Additionally born on as we speak’s date was Henry Peploski, a local of Garlin, Poland whose profession comprised six video games and two hits in 10 at-bats for the Boston Braves in 1929. The second of six Polish-born gamers in MLB historical past — Moe Drabowsky, who pitched from 1956-1972, is the latest — Peploski singled off of Pittsburgh’s Burleigh Grimes in his first-ever plate look.