HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: thornley@milli.cs.umn.edu (David H. Thornley)
Subject: Re: Js Need for LH SP (Was Schofield...)
Organization: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, CSci dept.
Distribution: na
Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1993 01:10:51 GMT

In article <kbanaian.189.0@bernard.pitzer.claremont.edu> kbanaian@bernard.pitzer.claremont.edu (King Banaian) writes:
>In article <C15u0M.Gsr@undergrad.math.waterloo.edu> djohnson@cayley.uwaterloo.ca (David Johnson) writes:
>
>>[The Jays and Expos have trouble with the Canadian Dollar; one report is
>> that the Jays lose $700K for each cent the Canadian dollar dropped; since
>> it dropped 10 cents in the last 6 months, that's a loss of $7M.]
>
>I really hope the Expos and Jays aren't this foolish.  It is very easy to 
>cover yourself against exchange rate changes by buying a futures contract of 
>US dollars, and thus lock in the exchange rate.  I would hazard a guess that 
>the Jays lost no such money.  If they have, Doc Palmer and I would be more 
>than happy to serve as economic consultants to rectify this problem.  (For, 
>say, 10% of the covered amount?)

You can do this on a short-term basis, and weather a short spell of bad
exchange rates, for a price.  For the long run, the Jays and Expos will
get large chunks of Canadian money, and pay out large chunks of US
money, and there's limits to how much insurance they can buy (or afford).

David Thornley
"Trying to come up with a new signature theme"

Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: cs1442au@utagraph.uta.edu (cs1442au)
Subject: Texas Rangers Fan Club
Organization: University of Texas at Arlington
Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1993 16:32:52 GMT

Hi there again. Anyone interested in a Texas Rangers New Group can email
me cs1442au@decster.uta.edu and you be added to our list of about 20
people. We started this last semester, so last semester members need not
respond. Thanks- Jason Brown

Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: drw3l@delmarva.evsc.Virginia.EDU (David Robert Walker)
Subject: Re: AVERAGE/GOOD values...
Organization: University of Virginia
Distribution: na
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 22:15:48 GMT

In article <1993Jan21.115544.1@stsci.edu> sandoval@stsci.edu writes:
>   What are the AVERAGE avg/obp/slg values for each position?
>That is, what are the values that are adequate?  And, as a
>followup, what are the values that are GOOD, or well above
>average?  

End of season stats, 1992, from USATBW:

al ba  oba  sa    nl 

c  242 308 364    245 307 351
1b 263 344 413    272 343 418
2b 263 335 356    258 324 354
3b 263 328 380    263 327 393
ss 254 312 329    250 314 336
lf 268 339 395    256 320 398
cf 263 320 390    275 340 390
rf 256 327 394    260 323 396
dh 258 332 398

Clay D.
From: akamholz@jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu (Andrew E Kamholz)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Re: Brewhas intereseted in Brunansky?
Date: 27 Jan 1993 16:09:05 -0500
Organization: HCF - Johns Hopkins University, Balitmore, Maryland, USA
NNTP-Posting-Host: jhunix.hcf.jhu.edu

I also heard that Baltimore was interestd in signing Bruno.
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: mcgill@lds.loral.com (Chris McGill 5471)
Subject: Re: Braves signing...
Organization: Loral Data Systems
Distribution: na
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 17:21:11 GMT

In article <C1BvHs.FtD@athena.cs.uga.edu> shimkus@athena.cs.uga.edu (Doc) writes:
>I havent seen this on the net yet, so......
>
>According to the Atlanta Journal/Constitution today (Saturday, 1/23), The 
>Atlanta Braves have signed free agent picher Jay Howell to a minor league
>contract.   The contract is non-garranteed and is full of incentives if Howell
>makes the team in spring training, etc.
>
>Comments?   Personally, i have always liked Howell, even if he DID play for the
>dodgers. :)  over the last 5 years, he has put up an era  of about 2.05 or 2.10.
>If he is healthy, it could be a good sign for the Braves bullpen.  :)

Yeah, the BRAVES bullpen could use some help, but it seems it is always in that
state. I, too, have always liked Howell (even tho' he was a DODGER) I hope he
can make the team. I know the BRAVES made a run at Worrell (tho' how serious a
run, I'm not sure). I had heard that some arm problems resurfaced when he was
examined by the DODGERS. Has there been any further reports?  Cox has basically 
had the bullpen by committee, going with whoever has the hot hand. But have any
of the BRAVES relievers come up specifically as a closer? Seems like Wohlers
might have, but at times he doesn't seem to quite have it mentally (yeah, I knowhe hasn't been up too long, but there are those that come up as a closer that
just seem to have that drive, that determination that seems lacking in Wohlers
at times..)

Now to see what a beardless Reardon will do for (or to) the REDS... ;-)

Peace...

Chris 
-- 
Christopher S. McGill      | ....56F cleared 30R. Please expedite...BE
MCGILL@WORLD.SINET.SLB.COM |        ADVISED we have an MD88 on short final..
MCGILL@MAIL.LDS.LORAL.COM  |
From: gglover@convex.COM (george glover)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: NL Schedule format
Date: 27 Jan 93 17:31:59 GMT
Reply-To: gglover@convex.COM (george glover)
Organization: CONVEX Computer Corporation, San Diego, Ca., USA
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
              Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
              not necessarily those of CONVEX.

Excuse me for not remembering, but will someone out there please tell me the
schedule format being used in the National League this year.  I know it is
not the same as last year, and it is not like the American League.
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: wilbanks@spot.Colorado.EDU (Stimpson J. Cat)
Subject: Re: Some difficult trivia
Organization: University of Colorado, Boulder
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 21:09:19 GMT

wilbanks@spot.Colorado.EDU (Another rabid Cowboy fan) writes:

>What future World Series winning manager played for the Class D McAlester 
>Rockets of the Sooner State League in the 1940s?

>(bonus kudos if you can name McAlester's affiliation at the time.)

Wow, this must have been difficult. 
Whitey Herzog was the player then manager in question. At that time, 
there were still B, C, and D leagues because of the plethora of players.

McAlester was a Yankees farm team. How do I knw all of this? My 
great-grandfather owned the team. 

-- 
Dylan Wilbanks, Classics major, AND NOW Environmental Conservation!
Currently at:	 |"George Bush is Out of Time. Bill Clinton and Al Gore
Box 1143	 |are Automatic for the People."
Boulder, CO 80306|		-VP Al Gore, 10-29-1992
From: dxf12@po.CWRU.Edu (Douglas Fowler)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Alltime games of Mon., Apr. 9 (ATAS)
Date: 28 Jan 1993 19:28:53 GMT
Organization: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH (USA)
Reply-To: dxf12@po.CWRU.Edu (Douglas Fowler)
NNTP-Posting-Host: slc12.ins.cwru.edu


Monday, April 9
A.L. scores
Cleveland 3, Baltimore 2(13 inn.); WP: Jones; LP: Watt; Gibson's HR wins
Boston 10, Washington 1; WP: Clemens; LP: Jenkins
Toronto 9, New York 8(11 inn.); WP: Henke; LP: Lyle; Sv: Caudill
N.L. scores
Chicago 5, St. Louis 4; WP: Alexander; LP: Forsch
Pirates 5, Phillies 3; WP: Ryan; LP: Roberts; Sv: Tekulve; Pirates use 5
pitchers
 Braves 6, Astros 4; WP: Burdette; LP: D. Smith
Giants 3, Reds 1; WP: Marichal; LP: Seaver; Sv: Wilhelm
--------------------------------------------------------------------
     Stars: John Lloyd and Dwight Evans were among the standouts on
defense for the Red Sox; Lloyd assisted in four double plays, and Evans
threw Toby Harrah out at the plate twice...Five Blue Jay pitchers held the
Yankees close, and they wound up winning on Tony Fernandez' race home on
Lou Whittaker's bunt. Seven home runs flew out of the park, including Dave
Winfield's first.  Following Gaylord Perry were two ineffective hurlers,
doing poorly mainly due to inactivity...Eddie Matthews launched two of
Boswaukta's four homers, including the winner in the eighth.
     Boston - The Red Sox look quite formidable, although they haven't
attempted to play Murderer's Row yet.  Wade Boggs was only hitting .270 or
so through five games, but he's started to come out of his slump by lining
the ball all over, rather than trying to knock someone in all the time from
his number three spot.  Others, such as Evans and Carlton Fisk, aren't
spectacular offensively, but they are among the best defensively.
     Clemens looked a little shaky, but he is facing the best ever, and he'll
improve as the season rolls along and he's less nervous.  He induced several
double plays, which was good for Sox fans to see; they have enough strikeout
pitchers.  Whether they can keep it up remains to be seen, but - at this point
- the hitting looks as good as New York's.  The pitching shall be examined
from the other side of the fence later.
-- 
Doug Fowler: dxf12@po.CWRU.edu  : Me, age 4 & now: "Mommys and Daddys & other
    Ever wonder if, after Casey : relatives have to give lots of hugs & love
missed the 3rd strike in the poem: & support, 'cause Heaven is just a great
he ran to first and made it?     : big hug that lasts forever and ever!!!"
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: john@sequent.com (John Vander Borght)
Subject: Re: Change the game?
Organization: Sequent Computer Systems, Inc.
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 93 00:34:41 GMT

genzuk@mizar.usc.edu (Michael Genzuk) writes:

>If change is indeed needed to stimulate the game I feel that realignment,
>expansion to three divisions per league and expansion of the playoffs to
>include more teams in post-season play is more appropriate.  Caution must
>be taken however.  What becomes of such things as "MLB Records"?  If teams
>are realigned to not only different divisions but different leagues what
>will become of such MLB staples as "National League" or "American League"
>records?  If Oakland, for example, is moved to the National League West,
>what becomes of American League Records?  There is talk also of expanded
>inter-league play.  What will be the impact of this on MLB?

What became of them when we had various expansions?  When we went from 154
games to 162 games?  When the American League added the DH?  When blacks
entered the leagues?  When the spitball was outlawed?

Times change, the leagues have changed.  All that really matters are Major
League Records.  The record for the most home runs in a season, a career
etc.  The "American League" records are bogus just so a few more people can
say they set a record.

Gee, guess all this database benchmarking I'm doing is making me grumpy.

John Vander Borght
john@sequent.com
-- 
"Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty!"
John Vander Borght
john@sequent.com
From: rickert@NeXTwork.Rose-Hulman.Edu (John H. Rickert)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Re: Lefty Grove....
Date: 25 Jan 1993 22:24:46 GMT
Organization: Computer Science Department at Rose-Hulman
Distribution: usa
Reply-To: rickert@NeXTwork.Rose-Hulman.Edu (John H. Rickert)
NNTP-Posting-Host: g215a-1.nextwork.rose-hulman.edu

In article <22JAN199317274918@mary.fordham.edu> nissim@mary.fordham.edu  
(Leonard J. Nissim) writes:
> An honest question:  Koufax pitched all home games in the LA Coliseum in 
> 1958-1961, which was obviously a gross, horrible place for left-handed
> pitchers to face right-handed hitters.  Do there exist "normalized" stats
> for Koufax for this period?  One would have to have his home and road 
> records separately, and an adjustment for park effect would have to done
> on the home record only.   

Bill James discusses Koufax' home/road splits in his last abstract.
His '61<->'62 road stats were similar, but his home stats improved greatly.
Moving to a pitchers' park made his stats look even better than they were.
These stats are also somewhere in the 1965 Ed Linn bio `Koufax' which lists  
all of Koufax's starts thru the 1965 season.

john rickert
rickert@nextwork.rose-hulman.edu
Go Brewers!
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: kettler@pierre.mit.edu (KETTLER, THOMAS R.)
Subject: Hack Wilson (Was: Ten Best Peaks (was Sandberg))
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1  
Organization: MIT Lab for Nuclear Science
Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1993 22:41:00 GMT

In article <1993Jan25.141143.28302@holos0.uucp>, lbr@holos0.uucp (Len Reed)  
                writes...
>In article <1993Jan22.213038.14499@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> gspira@nyx.cs.du.edu 
(Greg Spira) writes:
> 
>>Morgan had one of the 10 best peaks ever.
> 
>Sounds like an interesting topic for off-season arguments.  Okay, as a Red and
>especially in 1975-76 Joe Morgan was incredible.  Who else makes the top ten? 
>To qualify, we need someone who had a peak well above what one would expect
>when looking at the rest of the career, and a peak that didn't consist of
>a single great year.  (Of course these guidelines, like evrything else on
>the net, are arguable.)
> 
>To start it off, here are a couple of gimmes:
>Mantle and Kofax.
> 
>At the other extreme is Henry Aaron, who somehow hit 755 homers but never
>hit 50 in a single season.
>-- 
Actually, a great peak would be someone who only had one great season. Here is 
someone who might make that of having a great peak but not even a good career. 
The name is Hack Wilson. After all, he holds the NL home run record with 56 
and the major league RBI record with 190 for his 1930 season with the Cubs. 
However, alcoholism generated a speedy decline in his abilties and he was out 
of baseball in a few years. Maybe someone with a Total Baseball II or some 
other baseball statbook could post his year-by-year and career stats?

					Sincerely yours,

					Thomas R. Kettler "Expos Fanatic"
From: grabiner@math.harvard.edu (David Grabiner)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Re: Cecil signs :-( :-( :-(
Date: 21 Jan 93 19:12:15 GMT
 @kovalevskaia.harvard.edu><1993Jan21.025125.26861@athena.mit.edu>
Organization: /etc/organization
In-reply-to: cmk@athena.mit.edu's message of 21 Jan 93 02:51:25 GMT

In article <1993Jan21.025125.26861@athena.mit.edu>, Charles M Kozierok writes:

> In article <GRABINER.93Jan20140019@kovalevskaia.harvard.edu> grabiner@math.harvard.edu (David Grabiner) writes:
>>In article <1993Jan19.125019@IASTATE.EDU>, Thomas M Loughin writes:
>>
>>> But is a firstbaseman who slugs 50 points above average more or less
>>> valuable than a shortstop who does the same (everything else held at
>>> average)?  What about 50 below.  
>>
>>Offensively, the difference is the same; if your shortstop slugs 50
>>points below league average for a shortstop, while your first baseman is
>>50 points above, your team offensive totals will be the same as if both
>>players were league average.  One extra hit provides the same number of
>>runs, no matter who gets it.

> true, but i don't think that was Thomas's point. the question was
> rather "how much more valuable than an average 1B is a 1B who slugs
> 50 points higher than average?" vs the same for a shortstop. the 
> value of a player relative to the mean should be (partly) based on the number
> of standard deviations from the mean. and if the variance for SS
> is less than for 1B (and it probably is), then a SS who slugs 50 points
> over average is a more valuable commodity relative to other SS's than
> a 1B slugging the same amount over average.

I don't believe this is true, though.  The value of a player to your
team does not depend on standard deviations; it depends on the number of
games he helps your team win and lose.  If you trade a shortstop who
slugs 50 points better than average and an average first baseman for an
average shortstop and a first baseman who slugs 50 points better than
average, your team will still score the same number of runs.  Since you
break even on the trade, you must have traded players of the same value.

Thus, if the good offensive shortstop is more valuable than the good
offensive first baseman, then the average offensive shortstop must also
be more valuable than the average offensive first baseman.

The point I made is that there are more shortstops who slug 50 points
below average for their position than there are comparable first
baseman.  The reason is that players such as Schofield and Weiss can be
significantly more valuable that their offensive numbers and defensive
position indicate.

--
David Grabiner, grabiner@zariski.harvard.edu
"We are sorry, but the number you have dialed is imaginary."
"Please rotate your phone 90 degrees and try again."
Disclaimer: I speak for no one and no one speaks for me.
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: sivaram@plains.NoDak.edu (S. Hariharan )
Subject: Bo back in the cage.
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 13:39:23 GMT
Organization: North Dakota Higher Education Computing Network

Bo Jackson, who recently underwent an attachment of an artificial
hip, is back in the White-Sox batting cage.  Source: Local ABC
Sports News.

According to the news source, Bo can now run without limping. The
Sox are ready to play him on first base, but Jackson says that he
is ready to even DH as long as he gets some action.

According to jackson's trainers, Bo went through real hell to
reach the position where he is now.  This is indeed a tribute 
to the man's tenacity and fighting spirit.


S.H
Forever Twins.
======================================================================
Top of the 10th in Game-3 of 1991 ALCS(Twins/Jays) at the  Skydome.
Pagliarulo at the plate,  pintch hitting for Scott Leus,
facing rookie releiver Mike Timlin. The score tied at 2-2. 
Ball 1--- Fast ball outside--- 1 in 0
Ball 2--- Line Drive and this ball is gone over the right field wall. 
Home-run. Touch-em-all Pagliarulo. Twins lead 3-2.
A home-run that I will never forget.
Agi closes it in the bottom of the 10th.
Twins win 3-2 and lead the series 2-1.   
=======================================================================
From: fslrh@acad3.alaska.edu
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: <None>
Date: 25 Jan 93 19:03:31 GMT
Organization: University of Alaska Fairbanks


I'd like to know if anyone out there is interested in a 1959 set of Topps
Baseball cards.  It's not a complete set, but if you're interested in
completing a set or know someone who is, I'd be willing to part wioth some of
these.  Let me know what numbers you need, and I can send you a list of what's
available.  I didn't know if there's a seperate list for baseball.cards, so
sorry if this note's in the wrong place.
  -FSLRH@@acad3.alaska.edu
From: Timothy.J.Young@dartmouth.edu (Timothy J. Young)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
Subject: Re: YANKEE REFLECTIONS ANYONE???
Date: 25 Jan 93 04:09:51 GMT
 <1993Jan19.024549.20444@cs.cornell.edu> 
 <1993Jan22.120830.1@eagle.wesleyan.edu>  
 <1993Jan22.213722.12327@cs.cornell.edu>
Organization: Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
X-Posted-From: InterNews1.0a5@newshost.dartmouth.edu

In article <1993Jan22.213722.12327@cs.cornell.edu>
tedward@cs.cornell.edu (Edward [Ted] Fischer) writes:

> I wouldn't count on it.  Remember Jack Clark, Wade Boggs, Mike
> Schmidt, and others.  With any player over the age of about 32, there
> is a significant risk that they will suddenly and entirely cease to
> produce.  Von Hayes.  Jack Clark.  Wade Boggs.  I can't really say
> that Stewart or Morris or Molitor *will* be a total failure next year.
> But when you have those three *and* Carter *and* Borders *and* White,
> and no real depth to replace any of them (not that I know of, at
> least...  Unless Domingo Martinez is able to play the OF?), the
> probability of catastrophic loss at *some* position is pretty high.

   Exactly. The Yanks, just like in the mid-80's, are trying to buy the
pennant. It doesn't work, especially in the cases of the Red Sox, the
Mets, and the Dodgers last year. N.Y. does have a good farm system, but
after a few years of King George we'll see if that's still the case.
They're over-rated : they could be weak in the rotation this year if
their young pitchers don't make it. 





Tim Young, Dartmouth College, Class of '96
"Not everyone can carry the weight of the world..." -R.E.M.
The opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of Dartmouth
College or any of its students...
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball
From: thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu (Ted Frank)
Subject: Whitaker vs Sandberg
Reply-To: thf2@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1993 22:16:42 GMT

In article <C19t7z.K9r@world.std.com> jle@world.std.com (Joe M Leonard) writes:
>I do know that Whitaker came up in '76 or so and has been stringing
>seasons back-to-back since then.  Sure, some have been rather boring,
>but on the whole, he'd be a big plus to any team during that perion.
>While I don't have the exact numbers, his power improved as he aged,
>without giving up OBA...  Pretty good glove, and a LH-batter to boot.

(Whitaker came up in 1977 and was full-time starting in 1978.)

His OBA improved also.  His career high came in 1991, and he almost
beat that in 1992.  Once you park-adjust and age-adjust, his career
stats are about as good as Sandberg, but he's been considerably less
durable.  On the other hand, he's been more consistent, but that
has the side effect that his best season, 1991, isn't quite the caliber
of Sandberg's best seasons (though that might not be true once you
park-adjust).  He's only two-and-a-half years older than Sandberg, but
was a regular four years earlier, and a quality regular from the word
go, while Sandberg didn't really estalish himself as a hitter until his
third season.  Whitaker seems to be aging better also.  His 1991 was
as better than Sandberg's, and his 1992 was only 40 OPS behind or so.
He also had a better 1982, 1983, 1986, and 1988, even if you don't
park adjust.  If you do park adjust, you might be able to slip a few
other years there ahead of Sandberg.

I don't see how Sandberg can be the best second baseman of all time
when in his first eleven full-time years of his career, he was worse 
than Lou Whitaker in five of them.  Then, add the fact that Whitaker
was playing *good* second-base from 1978-1981 while Sandberg was
in the minors (ok, Lou's 1980 was abhorrent), it's hard for me to see
Sandberg being very much ahead of Whitaker in anything more than
TWG-ness, being able to play an extra 10-20 games a year, and maybe,
maybe, maybe peak value.  Whitaker's a solid player, but nothing about
him shouts "Best of All Time."  That he compares so favorably to
Sandberg should make one reconsider Sandberg.
-- 
ted frank                     | thf2@ellis.uchicago.edu 
standard disclaimers          | void where prohibited
the university of chicago law school, chicago, illinois 60637
Newsgroups: rec.sport.baseball