Joe Posnanski

So, while I was working on my Brad Ziegler story, I thought a lot about a theory that Brian Bannister has been working up lately. Banny’s feeling is that, in a very general sense, there are only three types of successful pitchers in the Big Leagues. Type A: A power, strikeout pitcher who keeps walks down and doesn’t give up too many home runs. Type B: An extreme ground ball pitcher who keeps walks down. Type C: A blend of Type A and Type B. Josh ... Read More

Well, I wrote a fairly long piece about Brian Bannister for the Star on Sunday -- it's all about how he prepared for perhaps the most gut-wrenching start of his career -- so I figure there's no real point in repeating myself for Banny Log. You can read the piece here if you like. And also, I ran across this on YouTube ... it's video-game Banny pitching his heart out for an inning against the tough Detroit Tigers lineup. I'm sure it's just ... Read More

Appearance No. 1: Vs. Detroit Tigers Innings: 1 Hits: 0 Earned runs allowed: 0. Strikeouts: 1 Walks: 0 Homers: 0 Extra base hits: 0. Decision: ND (0-0) Number of pitches: 12 Number of strikes: 8 BABIP: .000 (0 for 2) Season BABIP: .000 No, we’re not abandoning Brian Bannister. Of course not. We’ll get to him in a minute. But first ... the Royals got demolished by Detroit 19-4 on Monday night in a game notable for two events. 1. The horrible, awful-to-watch, turn-your-head-away performance of Jimmy Gobble. It was painful, ... Read More

Start No. 19: Vs. Chicago White Sox Innings: 6 2/3 Hits: 5 Earned runs allowed: 7. Strikeouts: 6 Walks: 2 Homers: 2 (same guy) Extra base hits: 4. Decision: ND (7-8) Number of pitches: 106 Number of strikes: 62 BABIP: .277 (5 for 18) Season BABIP: .293 * * * There are two things that drive me absolutely nuts. Well, OK, that’s not true, there are about 1.3 billion things that drive me absolutely nuts -- people who take up two parking spaces in a crowded parking lot; drivers who chug along ... Read More

Start No. 18: Vs. Tampa Bay Rays Innings: 5 Hits: 8 Earned runs allowed: 6. Strikeouts: 6 Walks: 1 Homers: 1 Extra base hits: 3. Decision: Loss (7-8) Number of pitches: 102 Number of strikes: 62 BABIP: .500 (8 for 16) Season BABIP: .300 Well, here would be my advice to every general manager in baseball ... the next time a large, power hitting, underachieving first baseman from Santo Domingo gets released by a team, grab him. Hold him. Squeeze him. Try a little tenderness. Seriously. Take a look at ... Read More