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Meg Rowley FanGraphs Chat - 4/9/19
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Thank you
2:37
I was really worried about my favorite writers leaving ever since Dave did but now that the season has started I’ve seen writers putting out a lot of the same content for which I started reading this site. Thank god baseball is back.
Meg Rowley
2:38
Obviously we miss the folks who have departed the site. We remain very fond of them and selfishly, I miss getting to read them. But I think we have a really terrific team doing just wonderful work, and as you said, the presence of baseball makes writing about baseball much more fun
Ron Kulpa
2:40
Am I really just going to completely get away with it?
Meg Rowley
2:40
I doubt it? This stuff takes a while.
JKD
2:41
So, there are a lot of dingers yes? And a lot of walks. It seems also that relievers are doing badly in all of these things. So I ran the numbers and of total batters faced by relievers so far in 2019, 1.59% have been hit by a pitch (1.11% in all of 2018, 1.2% just in April); 3.284% have hit a HR (2.796%; 2.512%); and 10.430% have walked (9.246%; 9.686%). So it sure seems like relievers are worse? Or hitters are better? Or possibly there is something going on with the BALL?!? I think maybe there is something going on with the ball.
Meg Rowley
2:42
Rob Arthur took a look at this over at BP and early results and all that, but yes, it would appear that the ball is different again this year
Marinerds
2:44
How dare you underestimate my win total this year!!!  Fun aside, you have to think that severe regression is coming soon with that horrid bullpen and defense.
Meg Rowley
2:44
I can't imagine they are going to keep scoring 8 runs a game
luke weaver (non) believer
2:44
luke weaver. 10 team. h2h. am i holding on, or cutting him loose?
Meg Rowley
2:45
You're asking a fantasy expert! Because I care about you!
Ryan
2:46
Re: The Cubs' fun level. Obviously there isn't a right way to be a fan, but is it wrong for Cubs fans to try and ignore the PR nightmares and try and just be a fan of the team? I'm not looking forward to the Sinclair TV deal, I'm disappointed the Cubs still employ Addison Russell, and I'm incredibly thankful none of the Ricketts have my email address. Am I wrong to still want the Cubs to succeed?
Meg Rowley
2:48
Woof, I don't know. I don't think there is a ton of ethical consumption to be had here just generally (here being in baseball). I don't think you have to stop rooting for them. And even counterbalancing your consumption with donations to charity to offset some of the teams behavior is complicated because that's about doing good but also justifying stuff to yourself. I don't think you're wrong, especially if you're grappling with the complexity of it, and trying to do some good in whatever way you can. Mostly, I'm really sorry that this is how the team you like best has chosen to repay your affection and attention.
Concrete Fan
2:49
Is Matt Chapman in your 'overall top-5 third basemen right now'?
Meg Rowley
2:49
Yes, for sure.
David
2:49
Is Daniel Vogelbach the answer the Mariners have been searching for at first base?
Meg Rowley
2:49
In the field? Absolutely not. The bat sure is fun right now, though.
Vogelbach is absolutely better in the field than he used to be. But he is a liability there, even at first.
Rey Diablo
2:51
The Rays, Meg, the Rays. So fun this early on.
Meg Rowley
2:51
They are indeed very fun.
JupiterBrando
2:51
would it be satisfying for Chris Davis to end his hitless streak on something like a weak dribbler down the third base line? I almost wonder if he's selling out for a home run to end it because anything else would make it all feel pointless
Meg Rowley
2:52
I can't speak to how he feels but I know that my own desperation would be such that it wouldn't matter. Just get a real hit that no one can say was because the official scorer was taking it easy on you.
Nate
2:52
Chris Sale's final ERA this season: above or below 3.75?
Meg Rowley
2:52
Below
BenZ
2:52
In 47 PA Mike Trout has a .367 / .574 / .933 line and in 32 PA Chris Davis has a .000 / .125 / .000 line. If somehow (use a lot of imagination here) their starts were exactly reversed, which would surprise you more? Davis with a 290 wRC+ start or Trout with a -76 wRC+ start?
Meg Rowley
2:53
Oh, this is a fun question.
Trout for sure.
Davis has been bad for a while now. Mike Trout is the best player in baseball.
2:54
it is a testament to how good he is, how other worldly, that him being momentarily bad, which happens all the time even to very good players, seems so aberrant compared to someone being really good for a minute, which happens to bad players all the time
Ryan
2:55
Hi Meg. I have been listening to the old Cistuli/Perry chats recently. Please don't let these go away. They really should be archived at the Library of Congress. True American tresures.
Meg Rowley
2:55
We have no plans to eliminate those. I like to listen to old episodes from time to time, too.
Marc
2:55
Hi Meg- I noticed in past Effectively Wild episodes that Ben and Jeff both mentioned that their enthusiasms for specific teams had been "sanded away," while you seem to still be a staunch supporter of the Mariners.  Is there something about working in your field that causes writers to lose their fandoms and you've avoided that same fate, or did they simply give up their love for specific teams in return for impartiality?
Meg Rowley
2:57
Not so staunch. I'd still prefer they win more than I'd like them to lose, but the feeling is definitely not where it once was. I think it is less a concern about being impartial (I mean, I'm a Mariners fan -- I am realistic about how often they are very bad), and more that you just watch a lot less of any one team because you have to and want to know more.
Anonymous
2:57
Is the whole 'every team gets an All-Star' thing a rule or more of a guideline? Asking for a friend in San Francisco.
Meg Rowley
2:57
It's a rule. Every team gets one.
P
2:58
Pyramid Brewing Co. outside the stadium. I don't typically like their beer or fruity but the Apricot Ale was a fantastic.
Meg Rowley
2:58
The bigger question is why does almost everything near Safeco close nerd-early during the season?
Damn it, T-Mobile.
Anonymous
2:59
"Nerd-early" is when I leave house parties.
Meg Rowley
2:59
Jesus, you go to house parties?
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