50 Best Pitching Teams in MLB History
This year was “The Year of the Pitcher.”
There were perfect games, no hitters, two outstanding pitching teams in the World Series.
And neither Cy Young winner even made it to the Fall Classic.
The Giants and Tim Lincecum won the title with outstanding pitching from the top of the rotation all the way to the closer’s spot.
But where do they rank among the best ever?
Check inside to find out.
MLB trade rumors have every team shipping away a good player for prospects or for an even better player.
How many of these rumors are actually true we will never know. But with the general managers’ meetings just three weeks away, there is going to be a lot of discussion. And with free agency just starting to kick into high gear, is going to be no shortage of good players available this winter.
The Hot Stove League is starting to fire up so we’ll take a look at who is (reportedly) available and whether or not they will actually be dealt.
Ten teams (at least) would like to have Cliff Lee’s services in 2011 and beyond.
Obviously, with their wealth and their World Series caliber roster, the Yankees are in the driver’s seat for the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner.
The other 29 teams in Major League Baseball certainly hope that doesn’t happen.
And one of those 29 teams might actually be lucky enough to steal him away from Hal Steinbrenner, Brian Cashman, and the Yankees.
Here are the ten best suitors.
Jon Miller, ESPN: That was a nice marriage. Maybe Joe Morgan wasn’t the most popular commentator in the history of the booth. But they don’t have to completely do away with the entire team.
Maybe Miller can be brought back (paired with someone new, of course) to salvage the ESPN Sunday Night TV broadcast.
Maybe he can’t.
Inside are 10 possible booth duos that might make for good baseball play-by-play, Or, if it’s a trainwreck, at least good television.
Are the New York Yankees making Cliff Lee an immediate offer?
According to the New York Post, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is on a plane headed for Arkansas. Maybe he’s going to check out Walmart’s international head quarters. Or maybe he is considering bringing Razorbacks head coach Bobby Petrino back to the world of professional sports.
But most likely he’s going to meet with free agent stud Cliff Lee, who is from and lives in “The Natural State.”
Cashman has plenty of obstacles to overcome in signing Lee, but most prominent is his wife’s apparent disdain for the Big Apple, after she was harassed during the ALCS at Yankee Stadium.
But negotiating a deal appeasing to both sides is also an issue. Lee is 32 years old. He is going to want a long contract, something similar to what the club gave his former teammate CC Sabathia just two years ago. But was three years younger when they signed him in 2009.
Several teams will be looking to sign Lee but the Yankees might be the only ones with the money, although the Rangers could get the “hometown” discount.
Here are 10 more rumors floating around the world of Major League Baseball.
MLB Rumors: The most burning question of the offseason is…?
Well there are plenty. And they affect plenty of teams in both leagues, and at just about every position.
There’s a lot of uncertainty heading into the next MLB season, and the “Final Four” of the 2010 season—San Francisco, Texas, Philadelphia and the New York Yankees—are the most at risk.
Inside we rank the top 10 questions heading into the 2011 season.
2011’s biggest free agent catch will probably be Tim Lincecum.
Then again. it might not be. More on that inside.
San Francisco signed “The Freak” to a two-year, $23 million contract prior to the 2010 season.
That’s great and all; it kept him from becoming a free agent after this year, which probably prevented the Giants from shopping him at the trade deadline, which would have crushed their World Series chance.
Yet, that also means he’ll be a free agent after next year. Trouble could be on the horizon for the newly crowned world champs.
As far as the rest of MLB, is Lincecum the best player available after next season? Here are five reason saying yes, five saying no, and an overall analysis.
Cliff Lee signing with the New York Yankees would be very lucrative, yet very costly to his legacy.
Part of the reason why is perception and image, but another part is the impact joining the Yankees could have on his actual on-the-diamond legacy.
He’ll certainly be the most sought-after player on this year’s “Hot Stove,” and New York is always a contender in that market.
Inside we offer 10 reasons why joining the Yankees would ruin his budding legacy as one of baseball’s elite.
Baseball Wives: The next VH1 reality show!
If Basketball Wives and Football Wives were worthy of their own shows, why not Baseball Wives?
In fact, shouldn’t Baseball Wives have come first? The national pastime has the richest tradition of hot baseball wives, ranging from Marilynn Monroe to Anna Benson. (Yes, that’s probably the only way to connect Joe DiMaggio and Kris Benson).
Factoring in personality, background, ability to stir up drama for the show, and (of course) hotness, here are some great candidates.
The best subplots in World Series history come from a variety of avenues
Some are on-the-field matchups, some are bad blood between teams and/or players, some are just created by wacky characters who happen to be playing in the game.
This years World Series between the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants is no exception.
There are some great subplots out there, like Bengie Molina facing his old team, or the celebrated Cliff Lee-Tim Lincecum duels…and the possibility of being treated to that three times.
Here’s a look back at some of the best subplots throughout the century-plus of World Series drama.