Napalm wrote:pete orr is going to be in this thread for the next 50 pages.

ugh..

NL CY YOUNG OF THE HALF-YEAR
Roy Halladay, Phillies

Before the Jair Jurrjens Fan Club starts typing the first of its 188,000 emails that announce, "Stark is an idiot," here's the deal with this pick: What we have here is, essentially, a tie between Cy Halladay and a shooting star who's having a phenomenal season (i.e., Jurrjens). "Here's the way I'd put it," one longtime NL scout advised Half-Year in Review. "You've got 1 and 1-A, and Halladay is 1. And the reason Halladay is 1 is that he's more feared." Another scout told me basically the same thing, saying: "Halladay is a guy you can match up with the toughest teams and anybody's No. 1. Jurrjens is on a hell of a roll, but it's not the same level of dominance." But even after listening to four scouts give virtually identical arguments, I wasn't sold. This award is about performance -- not history, not reputations. And fortunately, we now live in a world overstuffed with fabulous information to help us evaluate performance. So here's what that information tells us: Jurrjens is 12-3, with an incredible ERA (1.87) more than half a run lower than Halladay's (2.44). Ten years ago, that would have been the beginning and end of this discussion. But if you look beyond those columns on the stat sheet, you find it isn't that simple. Halladay is No. 1 in the NL in wins above replacement (4.7), according to FanGraphs. Jurrjens is 12th (2.3). Halladay leads the league in FanGraphs' Fielding Independent Pitching rankings and ESPN.com's Defense Independent ERA. Jurrjens sits way behind him, at 14th and 13th, respectively. According to Baseball Info Solutions, Halladay has thrown the most "Gems" (starts of six-plus innings pitched, with a 65-plus game score) in the league, with 10. Jurrjens is tied for 20th, with five. Halladay also leads Jurrjens in WHIP, strikeout ratio, walk ratio, average game score and team won-lost record. And Halladay tops him in all those departments even though he's faced 98 more hitters, made nearly twice as many starts that lasted seven-plus innings (15-8) and thrown 416 more pitches. So you tell me which of these guys has "pitched" the best. Those numbers tell me it's Roy Halladay -- barely. But you know what I'd tell anybody who would argue otherwise? This is one debate in which there's no wrong answer.

My ballot: 1) Halladay, 1-A) Jurrjens, 2) Cole Hamels, 3) Cliff Lee, 4) Clayton Kershaw, 5) Tommy Hanson.

FIVE CRAZIEST GAMES OF THE HALF-YEAR

• The 19-Inning Classic -- Phillies 5, Reds 4, in 19 unforgettable innings, May 25.

For one thing, this was the only Roy Halladay start in history ever to last more than six hours. But that isn't why this 600-pitch marathon will be remembered for about the next eight centuries. And the Reds actually led this game in extra innings, until Francisco Cordero served up a Ryan Howard homer in the 10th that forced them to play another NINE innings. But no one will recall that, either. No, what made this game an all-timer was the work of Phillies utility whiz Wilson Valdez -- on the pitcher's mound. Valdez headed for the rubber in the 19th, hit 89 miles per hour on the gun, ripped off a 1-2-3 inning and … (ta-taaaaa) … wound up as (who knew!) the winning pitcher. He was the second position player to do that in the division-play era, the first second baseman to collect a W since Cub Stricker in 1988 and the first man to start a game in the field and win it on the mound since the ultimate super-utility man, Babe Ruth. So what were the odds that Wilson Valdez and Babe Ruth would ever end up in the same sentence, huh?

Quote of the Day: From Valdez, who almost seemed disappointed his fun was over: "I could have gone out there for three or four more."

“I don’t know if I’ll be fishing on his property without pants on anytime soon.”

BigEd76 wrote:

“I don’t know if I’ll be fishing on his property without pants on anytime soon.”

ffs Cole

The2006Champ

ROFL! It does not hurt that bad you sissy mofo, had it so many times hiking I can't count. Worse than Ivy for sure but one can easily play through it.

The Marty Show wrote:

The2006Champ

ROFL! It does not hurt that bad you sissy mofo, had it so many times hiking I can't count. Worse than Ivy for sure but one can easily play through it.

phatj wrote:That looks like some sort of optical illusion