Saturday, January 27, 2018

Saturday Morning Hot Links

*Here's how you can get your own Astros license plate.

*Today:


*Today is SABR Day. Click this link to see if there is a SABR chapter meeting near you.

*Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto has some things to say, I suppose, about the state of Seattle's starting rotation:
(The Astros) have a terrific rotation. They have a very good team. Their rotation on paper is as good as anybody in baseball, or better. I don't think there is a team in the American League West who outpaces us in terms of our starting rotation. I'm not sure outside of last year's playoff teams...I don't know if there's another team in the American League that can say definitively that their rotation is better than ours.

While it's true Felix Hernandez was hurt for most of last year, Mariners starters put up 6.2 fWAR, 25th in the Majors, 12th in the American League, 4th in the AL West.

*27-year old Tri-City manager Jason Bell is "stoked" to get started. Bell was the development coach for the Midwest League-winning Quad Cities River Bandits in 2017.

*Former Astros Great Xavier Cedeno signed a minor-league deal with the White Sox.

*Alex Cora is leading a relief effort in Puerto Rico.

*Sam Miller has a fascinating look at what having the worst farm system in baseball actually means in the standings.

*New York Post: How the Brewers broke through in a slow offseason.

*How the Expos found Vlad.

*Michigan State is a horror show. Oh, and fire Dancing Suit Mark Emmert into the sun.