Horsehide Chronicles

  1. MLB Players Who Most Desperately Need a Change of Scenery This Spring

    In an ideal world, teams do not trade players who have diminished value. But in many cases, it becomes obvious that a player could use a change of scenery for one reason or another and the team is left with no choice but to find the best deal available...

    Jason Martinez Written by Jason Martinez about 2 months ago 7,776 reads 7 comments

  2. Checklist for Aging MLB Superstar Hitters to Know It's Time to Retire

    One of the best things about baseball is that ballplayers can stick around for a long time if they're good enough. It's not like football, where even the best players will be lucky if they're still worth a darn at the age of 30...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 4,175 reads 13 comments

  3. Does Buster Posey Deserve to Surpass Joey Votto as MLB's Longest Contract Ever?

    Asking what Buster Posey is worth to the San Francisco Giants is kind of like asking what the Statue of Liberty is worth to the United States, the Eiffel Tower is worth to France and the Great Wall is worth to China...

    Jason Catania Written by Jason Catania about 2 months ago 34,498 reads 102 comments

  4. Reliving Barry Bonds' Tainted 73-Homer Season in the Polo Grounds

    It's time for a what-if scenario involving Barry Bonds and his infamous 2001 season. This scenario shall be particularly fun, for it involves time travel. Bonds, as you'll well remember, hit an MLB -record 73 home runs in 2001...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 8,754 reads 37 comments

  5. Updating All MLB Rule 5 Draftees' Quests to Make Opening Day Rosters

    Fifteen players were taken in the Rule 5 Draft this past December. They must remain on their new team’s major league roster for the entire season (and on the active roster for at least 90 days) or be offered back to the team they were drafted from...

    Jason Martinez Written by Jason Martinez about 2 months ago 2,695 reads 2 comments

  6. MLB Teams with Pitching Depth to Trade in 2013

    “Which MLB teams have pitching depth to trade?” is sort of a trick question. If you ask any general manager in the league, they’ll tell you that you can never have enough pitching depth...

    Jason Martinez Written by Jason Martinez about 2 months ago 4,980 reads 13 comments

  7. Does Albert Pujols Need to Face DH Reality to Avoid an A-Rod Contract Repeat?

    The Los Angeles Angels signed up for a 10-year commitment worth $240 million to bring Albert Pujols aboard in December 2011. Based on how the first year went, there's a pretty big question mark looming over the next nine years of the agreement...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 6,808 reads 37 comments

  8. MLB Owes the NFL Nothing in Ravens-Orioles Scheduling Conflict

    The National Football League is scrambling to figure out scheduling for its 2013 season opener, which will hopefully feature the Baltimore Ravens hosting a grand FOOTBALL! celebration at M&T Bank Stadium...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 3,981 reads 17 comments

  9. Top Candidates for 2013 MLB Comeback Player of the Year

    With rosters starting to take shape before Opening Day, let's take a look at which players might be candidates for MLB 's Comeback Player of the Year in 2013. I've put together a list of players...

    Jason Martinez Written by Jason Martinez about 2 months ago 2,437 reads 8 comments

  10. Differentiating Between an MLB Ace and a True No. 1 Starter

    There are ace pitchers, and then there are ace pitchers. You know what I mean. There's an abundance of starting pitchers around Major League Baseball who are very good, but only a couple who are better than very good...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 6,546 reads 28 comments

  11. Blueprint to Receiving Maximum Trade Value for an MLB Superstar

    Imagine, for a second, that the New York Yankees wanted to trade Robinson Cano. Sure, Cano is a superstar in the prime of his career and the best player on a franchise that considers itself a contender every year...

    Jason Catania Written by Jason Catania about 2 months ago 1,155 reads 1 comments

  12. Whose Health Is More Crucial to Red Sox Success: David Ortiz or Jacoby Ellsbury?

    After losing 93 games and making a mockery of themselves in the process last season, the Boston Red Sox have their eyes on smooth sailing and a return to form in 2013. They're banking on much going right...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 2,292 reads 12 comments

  13. Is the Elite Power/Speed Combo Player Making a Comeback in MLB?

    In baseball, the perfect offensive player is a guy who can hit for power and steal bases. Scouts and clubs long for these guys like Homer Simpson longs for donuts . The conventional wisdom is that these guys aren't easy to find...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 8,417 reads 26 comments

  14. How Bud Selig's PED Witch Hunt Could Impact the 2013 MLB Season

    Major League Baseball is ready for a major offensive in its ongoing war against performance-enhancing drugs. By the time it's over, the league might have the war all but won...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 2,788 reads 16 comments

  15. Constructing Yankees-Twins Justin Morneau Trade to Replace Mark Teixeira in 2013

    When they signed Mark Teixeira as a free agent in December of 2008, the New York Yankees must have figured they weren't going to have to worry about first base for the next eight years...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 24,296 reads 60 comments

  16. Selecting a March Madness Bracket of the Greatest MLB Players of All Time

    When it comes to ballplayers, "the greatest of all time" is a touchy subject. There have been many great ones, and trying to whittle the list down to one definitive GOAT is an exercise that will give you brain aches...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 155,993 reads 166 comments

  17. Should a Strength of Schedule Metric Be Used to Seed MLB Playoff Teams?

    The Major League Baseball season is long and hard for everyone, but the "hard" part is more pronounced for some clubs. In regard to peril, not all schedules are created equal...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 1,833 reads 3 comments

  18. Is Stephen Strasburg Finally Poised for a 200-Inning, Cy Young-Level Season?

    The time has come for Stephen Strasburg to finally leave the experimental stage of his career. If all goes well, he'll win the first of what should be many Cy Young awards. Then he'll cure the common cold and save the pandas...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 1,595 reads 12 comments

  19. Success Rates of Preseason MLB Favorites Living Up to the Hype

    This is the time of year when both the oddsmakers and baseball experts are pursuing a common hobby: trying to convince everyone of who's going to win the World Series...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 3,591 reads 6 comments

  20. What a 3rd Straight WBC Title for Japan Would Say About Baseball in America

    Team Japan is doing its thing once again at the World Baseball Classic. The squad has made it to the championship round, and a third straight WBC championship would put Japan in a prime position to send the good old U...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 1,941 reads 5 comments

  21. Overall Health Report for the Sport of Baseball Heading into 2013

    With the Major League Baseball season set to open ( Squeeee !!!) in just a couple weeks, by now fans should have a pretty good idea of how their favorite clubs are shaping up heading into 2013...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 7,791 reads 4 comments

  22. Is There Really a 'Knuckleball Hangover' After Facing R.A. Dickey?

    Facing R.A. Dickey's knuckleball isn't easy. The only thing his knuckler respects less than the feelings of hitters is the laws of physics...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 3,535 reads 6 comments

  23. Would a Compromised Zack Greinke Derail the Dodgers' Lofty Goals for 2013?

    If there's a team in Major League Baseball that's well-equipped to deal with an injury to a starting pitcher, it's the Los Angeles Dodgers . But that doesn't mean they should have no worries about the news regarding Zack Greinke ...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 4,484 reads 21 comments

  24. Do the MLB Milestones That Might Be Reached in the 2013 Season Still Matter?

    Major League Baseball fans love a good milestone chase, and for good reason. They add another layer of interest to the game and serve as an excuse to bust out all the usual rhetoric about baseball history...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 9,146 reads 9 comments

  25. Does WBC Participation Help or Hurt Player Production In-Season?

    The World Baseball Classic is part international baseball tournament and part ominous cloud of mystery for Major League Baseball players. There are two chief fears regarding the WBC ...

    Zachary D. Rymer Written by Zachary D. Rymer about 2 months ago 3,534 reads 3 comments