In several key statistics, Ramirez ranks among the NL leaders. He is third in stolen bases (40), seventh in runs scored (92), tied for ninth in triples (seven) and eighth in number of pitches seen (2,198).

 

Seeing so many pitches is a sign Ramirez can make an opposing pitcher work.

 

Ahem.

 

Being eighth in pitches seen, when you are a leadoff hitter, is no big deal at all. Obviously the leadoff pitcher is going to have more at-bats than anybody else on the team, so he will end up seeing more pitches. The correct stat to use here is pitches-per-at-bat, which Fisaro neglects to show. And the correct ranking to use here would be how he stacks up against other leadoff hitters, something Fisaro neglects as well.

 

Then again, I'm probably just being too picky so don't pay attention to me. I'm just glad we made such an awesome comeback tonight (though I only saw parts of it).

 

And don't look at me as being negative. The fact that Han-Ram is even mentioned is this type of discussions at age 22 is in itself an awesome foreshadowing of his potential. As much as I loved Beckett (Game six, anyone?), I'm glad we have Shadez on our team. I think that as of today, the Sox wouldn't have given Han-Ram for Beckett straight up, let alone include Hannibal in the deal.

 

Tell me, Clarice- have the lambs stopped screaming?

-Hannibal Lecter, toying with other people's minds as always... and succeeding, as always.

 

I do wish we could chat longer, but I'm having an old friend for dinner?

-Hannibal Lecter, before actually eating a human brain for dinner.

 

LONG LIVE HANNIBAL!

 

 

I guess it isn't too bad of a statistic if you figure there are what...16 lead off hitters in the NL?

 

Yeah Hanley has been good and will keep getting better its not bad for his rookie season

Eighth in a group of 16 is middle of the pack and not worth noting in the way Fisaro put it. It's really great considering he's a 22 year old rookie, but, again, Fisaro was putting it as if he was beating the crap out of most major league regulars (starters) when it came to pitches faced. It's misleading journalism-- using stats unethically (or ignorantly, or just plain "wrongly") just to try to prove a shaky point.

 

And I must be hella bored to be having such a meaningless argument on a Friday night in front of my computer. Sad, really.

Ramirez also strikes out a lot, which is something you don't want in a lead off hitter. To me, he's more of a power hitter with speed, like Soriano but with less power and more speed. However, I think its retarded for a guy like Soriano to bat lead off. Alfonso in particular has over 40 homers but only about 70 some RBI....he should have well over 100 RBI batting lower in the order with runners in scoring position....eventually you gotta move hanley lower in the line up as he gains more power. Maybe by then we'll have a true lead off hitter, maybe a center fielder.

My main point is this: I don't think Fisaro is an ignorant wannabe baseball journalist. I think he did this deliberately. He saw HanRam's pitches-per-at-bat average, didn't find it impressive, and decided it was flashier (and profitable-er albeit misleading..lier) to show how he ranks in overall pitches seen. No big deal. But it is somewhat insulting to those who can see through it because it means he thinks us all too ignorant to notice.

1-7 on the total pitches seen list are: Adam Dunn, Felipe Lopez, Rafael Furcal, Chase Utley, Alfonso Soriano, Nick Johnson, Jason Bay

 

 

Ramirez is 12th in the NL in p/pa... still pretty good. He's behind Abreu, Johnson, Burrell, Beltran, Ensberg, Dunn, Carroll, Hall, Freel, Cameron, Kearns.

1-7 on the total pitches seen list are: Adam Dunn, Felipe Lopez, Rafael Furcal, Chase Utley, Alfonso Soriano, Nick Johnson, Jason Bay

 

 

Ramirez is 12th in the NL in p/pa... still pretty good. He's behind Abreu, Johnson, Burrell, Beltran, Ensberg, Dunn, Carroll, Hall, Freel, Cameron, Kearns.

 

 

 

Aha! Finally somebody shows me a true stat. Thanks for proving (unlike Fisaro) that my dawg Shadez DOES deserve the credit. Maybe you should write the articles for the official website :thumbup

 

p.s. I am VERY surprised to find Soriano in that list though. I guess he's left his free-swinging days behind him.

My main point is this: I don't think Fisaro is an ignorant wannabe baseball journalist. I think he did this deliberately. He saw HanRam's pitches-per-at-bat average, didn't find it impressive, and decided it was flashier (and profitable-er albeit misleading..lier) to show how he ranks in overall pitches seen. No big deal. But it is somewhat insulting to those who can see through it because it means he thinks us all too ignorant to notice.

 

The NL has 92 players with 387+ PAs and Hanley is 12th among the 92 in pitches per PA so he deserves credit for his patience and making pitchers work which is one of the things a leadoff hitter should do. Our former leadoff hitter, JP, is 77th.

 

With that said, I agree with you about Fisaro. The pitches per PA is a much more relevant number than total pitches but "8th" rings more impressive that "12th" so he went with total pitches. Fisaro is an infomercial writer so I keep that in mind when I read his stuff.