MLB 2017

Yeah, there is no denying how great Joe was. He is more than likely the greatest 2nd baseman ever.

Even with generational difference, Hornsby probably still maintains that title over Morgan. But there is probably a legitimate debate in there.

Hmmm, doing some more research it seems like Hornsby by most accounts was a pretty bad defensive player at 2nd base. Current WAR metrics always do a really poor job with past players, and actually tend to usually not ding them enough for bad defense. You could probably make a case for Morgan then if Hornsby was properly evaluated defensively, and then adjusted for the fact that Morgan played later in the timeline. Even then, Hornsby by just about any accounts is a historically insane bat, I'd probably still slightly go with Hornsby.

Also, the current Bill James War on WAR is somewhat interesting. I think anyone who likes metrics would concede WAR is far from a perfect stat, but it is definitely a nice baseline. Apparently the American League MVP race this year pushed him over the top. He felt Altuve was firmly the better player, and that advanced metrics overrated Judge. That being said even accounting for James' argument that WAR doesn't account for "context" or properly estimate "wins", if you take fWAR and then adjust it using James' Pythagorean Wins Expectations system, the total becomes: Judge 7.3 fWAR (non adjusted 8.2), Altuve 7.7 (non-adjusted, 7.5). So the total is fairly negligible either way. Anyways, a decent read if you are into that kind of thing.

Analysis | Bill James, who spurred baseball’s analytics revolution, is waging a mini war on WAR

Mariners, Giants Will Meet With Shohei Ohtani; Yankees, Mets, A's, Twins, Red Sox Out Of The Running

Ohtani and his agency has started cutting teams, and very surprisingly the Yankees were one of the teams that did not make the cut. It appears he strongly favors a "west coast" and/or "small market" team.

The Mariners, Giants, Angels, Padres, Dodgers, Cubs, and Rangers all appear to still be in the hunt for Ohtani's services.

update:
Marlins Agree To Framework Of Giancarlo Stanton Deals With Cards, Giants

Giancarlo Stanton sweepstakes appear to be nearing an end. He prefers the Dodgers, but it appears the Dodgers might not have enough flexibility to take on his contract. The Giants and the Cardinals are the front runner. I'd expect that Giants to be the current favorite.

I haven't seen anything yet that indicates he specifically favors San Fran, but I wouldn't be surprised. GM "speculation" is Seattle.

I think he'll sign with the Rangers. May be local market bias, but there's been some interesting tidbits in regards to their connection to him dating back to last year in the local media.

Ohtani and Maitan for the Angels.

Trout might have a relevant squad again.

In Stanton news: He is apparently willing to immediately waive his no-trade clause for the Dodgers, Yankees, Astros and Cubs. So we'll see if he ends up budging this weekend and open it for the Giants. Winter Meeting start Sunday, so hopefully the offseason will actually start moving.

So the Yankees are about to be home to the two most imposing physical freaks to ever play the outfield. This might kill my dream of Harper in pinstripes, but wow. Castro and the prospects they are going to give is nothing. I am curious what the money will be like. It'd be an absolute steal if this turns out to be around $20 million /yr.