Mad Mark
09-13-2007, 03:16 PM
Tom Boswell can be super annoying when writing about the Orioles or Nationals, but I found this piece in today's Post to be interesting, and I'd love to know what the rest of the Hangout thought of it:
LINK (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/12/AR2007091202740.html)
Occasionally, a baseball team finds a slightly different and subtly efficient way to play the game. Through a blend of style and personnel that goes against the current vogues, such teams seem like throwbacks or outliers, clubs that cannot quite be explained by the vocabulary of the day. But the won-lost record tells the tale. They come to the top, though no one quite knows why -- except the teams themselves. They always know. Victory is never an accident. As October approaches, they can't wait for the postseason to begin. Because they are slightly mysterious, they are dangerous, especially to more famous foes.
That brings us to the Los Angeles Angels, a team that doesn't hit home runs, doesn't draw walks, doesn't successfully steal bases and doesn't show patience at the plate, all cardinal sins in the stat-geek world. However, the Halos do score tons of runs and have the second-best record in the sport, despite only one household name (Vladimir Guerrero). The Angels currently can be seen torturing the Orioles at Camden Yards; their series concludes Thursday night, none too soon for Baltimore's taste, after being edged 10-5 and 18-6 the last two nights.
LINK (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/12/AR2007091202740.html)
Occasionally, a baseball team finds a slightly different and subtly efficient way to play the game. Through a blend of style and personnel that goes against the current vogues, such teams seem like throwbacks or outliers, clubs that cannot quite be explained by the vocabulary of the day. But the won-lost record tells the tale. They come to the top, though no one quite knows why -- except the teams themselves. They always know. Victory is never an accident. As October approaches, they can't wait for the postseason to begin. Because they are slightly mysterious, they are dangerous, especially to more famous foes.
That brings us to the Los Angeles Angels, a team that doesn't hit home runs, doesn't draw walks, doesn't successfully steal bases and doesn't show patience at the plate, all cardinal sins in the stat-geek world. However, the Halos do score tons of runs and have the second-best record in the sport, despite only one household name (Vladimir Guerrero). The Angels currently can be seen torturing the Orioles at Camden Yards; their series concludes Thursday night, none too soon for Baltimore's taste, after being edged 10-5 and 18-6 the last two nights.