A Dozen Packs Down and This One is Completely Mutant...

I have 81 points up to this point and I am ready to rip pack #12, aka the halfway point in this 2011 Gint-A-Cuffs box. This pack was pretty crazy, mutant really. I have never heard of a short print hot pack, but if such a thing exists, this is it… Anyway, here is my 12th pack…

I will start with a favorite player of mine, not my “Favorite Player”, but a fave nonetheless… I’m talking about card #138 of Cubs pitcher Matt Garza. This dude pitched the first and only no-hitter in Tampa Bay Rays history and they traded him the very next season. Thanks to the WGN Superstation, I have got to see Garza pitch quite a bit this year. I think he is a better pitcher than his 6-8 record indicates. The Cubs are giving Garza even less run support than the Rays did… Garza currently has a career LOW 3.68 ERA and 157 strikeouts in 151 innings. No points, but I ain’t worried…

The next 3 cards didn’t yield me any points either, but just you wait… Featured here are card #94 of Josh Rodriguez, #84 of Gregory Infante and card #167 of Adam LaRoche.
Things start to get a little odd with the next few cards. The 5th card out of the pack is card #330 of Yankees Ace CC Sabathia. I lose a point because CC is a stupid Yankee, but I gain 2 points cuz it is a short print. I still get 1 point total from this card and I am not done with the short print goodness.
Next up is card #345 of current Brewers Ace Zack Greinke. Another freaking short print and they came back to back! I don’t get the Yankees penalty on this one, just 2 points for being a short print. Not too shabby…
I am still in shock that I got 2 short prints consecutively… One of a current Brew Crew hurler, one of a past… But wait, there is more!
A Home Town Heroes card of EVERYONE’S Favorite Player Jon Lester. Like Raymond, everybody loves Jon Lester and I get a total of 3 points for this piece of cardboard and I am not finished cuz there is one mini left in the pack…
This particular mini is card #327 of David DeJesus. Another freakin’ short print, but this one is an even tougher pull… The regular short prints are 1 in two packs and I got two in one, but the mini SP is 1 in 13 packs, so this could be my one and only in this box…. Plus 3 points for the Troll, woo hoo!
Even losing a point for CC being a stupid Yankee I still come away with 9 points for this pack… Everything except for the SP base cards are up for trade…

If you are collecting the set I have noticed that I have a dupe of SP card #323 of Orlando Hudson. If anyone needs it, let me know… First reader to respond in the comments AND read this awesome post from everyone’s favorite nocturnal birdy blogger can have it – no strings attached… You should probably mention something about the Night Owl post in the comments to indicate that you read it… I am sure you did. If you wasted your time reading my silly posts and you aren’t reading the Night Owl on a daily basis, you aren’t making the best use of your time… Just saying…

Thanks for reading. After twelve packs I have 90 points. If I stay on this pace I will not be the 2011 Gint-A-Cuffs champion, BUT I think things will be getting better, so look out Nachos Grande, the Troll is coming!!! Go Rays! Troll out.

Baseball Bloggers Alliance Ballot - My Picks for the 2010 Walter Johnson Award for Top Pitcher in American League

Its Baseball Bloggers Alliance voting time again – this round is for the Walter Johnson Award for Top Pitcher in each league. As I am an American League Blogger, following the Tampa Bay Rays, I will be placing my votes for the American League’s best pitcher. I will rank my top 5 pitchers in the League, but will start with a few guys who were on the cusp, but didn’t quite make the cut this season.

2010 was the year of the pitcher, but more so it was the year of the YOUNG pitcher. I broke down my top-10 only one was over 30 years old, but the average age is just 26 years of age among my top 10 AL pitchers.

I am generally a fan of the “crafty vet”, but I couldn’t place a single pitcher of that variety in my ranking. Carl Pavano of the Twins came closest – at 17-11 with 7 complete games and a 3.75 Pavano used his craftiness to the max, but it just wasn’t enough to get him among the elite American League hurlers.

I also didn’t place any relievers on this list. Rafael Soriano was a huge difference maker for the Tampa Bay Rays this year and he was deservedly named the BBA’s Goose Gossage Award winner as top reliever in the AL, but I don’t think he, or any other closer, embodies the spirit and legacy of Walter Johnson.

That said these are my Top-10 American League pitchers in descending order. ALL of these guys have BRIGHT futures ahead of them.

Starting at number 10 is the youngest starter on this list, 22 year old Trevor Cahill from Oakland. Cahill put up really amazing numbers for the A’s this year. He and Gio Gonzalez gave Oakland a great 1-2 punch in 2010, but it was Cahill’s 18-8 mark with a 2.97 ERA that got my attention.

Ranking 9th is my hometown flavor choice. The Tampa Bay Rays 26 year old right hander Matt Garza. Garza’s ERA is gigantic compared to Cahill’s and others on this list, but recall that I am a homer AND Garza had a damn good year and was a key reason the Rays had the best record in the AL without the standard offensive output they are known for. Garza was 15-10 in 32 starts with a 3.91 ERA and 150 K’s over 204 innings. He had 3 complete games, one of them a shutout and oh yeah, that shutout was a no-hitter.

My number 8 is a 25 year old from Boston. I think that Clay Bucholz is on the brink of superstardom, but I don’t think he is quite there yet. He only made 28 starts this season for the Sox, but pitched like an Ace. His mark of 17-7 and crazy low 2.33 ERA is jaw dropping.

Moving on to number 7 on my list is the only ranked pitcher over 30, 31 year old Cliff Lee. Lee has been nothing short of awesome in the postseason, but this is a regular season award. He averaged over 7 innings in his 28 starts which is great and threw 7 complete games. His losing record with the Rangers and 12-9 overall record just doesn’t do enough for me which leaves him 7th on my list.

The best of those who didn’t crack the top 5 is Los Angeles Angels starter Jered Weaver. Weaver didn’t have the win loss mark that his teammate Ervin Santana did, but the tall righty was more dominant than his 13-12 record indicates. The competition was stiff this year and Weaver’s 3+ ERA was too high for my vote, but I have to say that his league leading 233 K’s over 224 innings is Walter Johnson-esque.

Okay, now onto the top-5…

Ranking 5th is Detroit Tigers starter Justin Verlander. The 2006 Rookie of the Year always ranks among the best, but hasn’t had that breakout year to make him THE BEST. His 18-9 mark and 219 strikeouts were great, but not enough to rank him any higher (or lower).

My 4th place vote goes to my hometown Ace, Mr. #1, the Rays 24 old year old lefty David Price. I had to detach myself and go by performance and once I did he dropped from 1st place to 4th. At 19-6 with a 2.72 ERA Price had an awesome, better than expected breakout year, but I think this is just the beginning of what he can do and I don’t think he was quite worthy of Walter Johnson’s name this season. I would like to see Price going deeper into games and making more batters look foolish and raise his K total a bit. Awesome season, but a few guys were dialed in a bit more…

The Rays weren’t the only team to have 2 pitchers crack my Top-10; the other is the Boston Red Sox and their 26 year old ace Jon Lester. Lester gave up 1 run more a game than his teammate Bucholz, but pitched more often and stuck out much more. Injuries rattled the Sox this season, but Bucholz and Lester kept Boston in the hunt all year. 19-9, 3.25 ERA and 225 strikeouts is good enough for my third place vote.

We are creeping up on the winners and are down to number 2. I went with the New York Yankees 6’7” left hander Carsten Charles Sabathia. CC won 20 games for the first time in his 10-year career going 21-7 with a 3.18 ERA. He was hot and cold towards the season’s end, but 34 starts, 237 innings and 197 Ks look good next to the 20 wins.

Okay, here we are, down to the best. My selection for the BBA’s Walter Johnson Award for top pitcher in the American League. I went with the Mariners 24 year old Ace “King” Felix Hernandez. I really can’t believe that the Mariners had as bad a record as they did considering they started the year with a 1-2 attack from King Felix and Cliff Lee. Hernandez finished 2nd in the Cy Young Award vote last season when he went 19-9 for Seattle. This year his record dropped to 13-12, but he was an even better pitcher this season. He had more complete games, more innings pitched, more strikeouts and a lower ERA in 2010. I think that Felix Hernandez most embodies the true workhorse, dominant ace that Walter Johnson was for 2010. I can’t believe this guy is only 24! 13-12 record, a 2.27 ERA, 249 innings and 232 strikeouts. Awesome. King Felix Hernandez is my 2010 Walter Johnson Award Winner.
Thanks for reading. Thanks to the Baseball Bloggers Alliance for organizing this and for giving me a vote! I love this game! Troll out.