There have been only 21 Modern Era perfect games in MLB history. This modern era stretches over the last 109 seasons and tens of thousands of games. Three of those perfect games have occured in 2012(14%of the total), six have taken place in the past 25 months(29%), and ten have take place in my short 19 years (48%). Contrast that with Don Larsen's perfect game which was the first one thrown in 34 years. Many adults had gone their entire lives without seeing a perfect game thrown; now they've become commonplace.
But this does not take away from what King Felix did this week. I've never seen such command and domination that late in any game; much less a perfect game situation. He struck out the side in the 8th and then struck out two more in the ninth seemingly without breaking a sweat. Hernandez has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for a few years now and he's only 26 years old. This offseason might finally be the time for Seattle to trade Hernandez, who could get them a "King's" ransom in return. The Mariners haven't made the playoffs in eleven years and the amount of prospects/picks they would receive in return from Herdandez would be incredibly huge. That haul could go a long way in helping them play into October for the first time since Ichiro was a rookie.
The Herdandez perfect game would have been a great diversion from the unforetunate Melky Cabrera story if every single member of the media didn't mention what a great diversion it was from that story. Their constant mention of the attention diversion kind of defeated the purpose. As far as the actual story goes; I'll save any moral lecture on whether what he did was wrong or any should we have been surpised that a guy went from below replacement level player to MVP candidate in his late twenties. All that matters now is how this affects the Giant's chances in the wild card race. A team losing it's best hitter for the stretch run is always detrimental to their chances but especially so in this case. New acquisition Hunter Pence hasn't produced as expected yet and their line-up isn't exactly the '27 Yankees. Luckily, Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey have been crushing the ball lately and this may be enough for the Giants to hold on to the NL West. Then, come October, anything could happen. No one knows this better than the Giants.
Hot Teams:
Tampa Bay: Aside from getting embarassed by King Felix on wednesday, the Rays have been playing and hitting as well as anyone lately. They've won eight of ten and it appears the bats have finally come to life in Tampa. Evan Longoria is now back in the line-up full time and others (Zobrist, Upton, Jennings) have started picking up their pace. Meanwhile the starting staff is humming along like the machine it was supposed to be. Price, Hellickson, Moore, and Shields is an imposing quartet for any AL team Tampa might run into in October. Yet no one is talking about them. They may be 2012's number one sleeper.
Atlanta: If I were to ask you who the 4th best team in the MLB is right now, would you say the Atlanta Braves? What if I said they had the same record as the Texas Rangers? Yes the Braves have won seven of ten and are sticking right with the MLB leading Nationals. They are doing this with a solid, consistent line-up, reliable starting pitching, and a stellar bullpen. If the Nationals slow down at all (which they will, especially if Strasburg is benched), the Braves could easily take the NL East. That is, of course, if they can avoid having a September like 2011.
Not so Hot Teams:
Los Angeles Angels: Over the last year the Angels have locked up one of the game's best pitchers, . signed another all star pitcher in the offseason, signed one of the best hitters in baseball history to a multi-year deal while still semi- in his prime, brought up one of the best rookies in MLB history, watched another young guy become one of the best sluggers in baseball, and traded for another one of the game's best pitchers. Yet they sit in third in the AL West, only three games over .500. Why? Well their pitching staff isn't doing near what it was expected to do. Greinke has struggled since coming to the American league while the four and five pitchers have been as overpaid a duo as there is in the league. Both Dan Haren (4.90 era) and Ervin Santana (5.59) have been huge disappointments thus far. To make matters worse, Weaver and Wilson aren't exactly hot right now either, just as phenom Mike Trout is slowing down. The Angels have the talent and the time to get back into playoff position; but they'd better start winning before it's too late.
Houston:Q: What happens when a bad team trades nearly everyone of value on their team? A: The 2012 Houston Astros! Let's take a look at some of the incredible feats the Astros have achieved this season.
After starting 22-23 they've gone 17-59, good enough for a .223 winning percentage.
They haven't won more than two games in a row since May 25th.
They've lost at least four games in a row seven times, at least eight in a row three times.
45 different player have taken an at bat so far, all before September call ups have even come into play, enough to fill out five line-up cards.
Their second best regular starter left on the roster has over a 5.00 e.r.a.
Ladies and Gentleman, your 2012 Houston Astros!
One quick thought before this ends; The Nationals were also the worst team in baseball in back to back years (2008, 2009). After a below average 2010 and a pedestrian 2011, the Nationals are the best team in baseball in mid August. Keep the faith alive Astro's fans. Things can change in an instant..
Stay Hungry My Friends.
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