Wow, I did -not- realize that it's been a month without any content around here! Sorry about that! Luckily, it was during the worst (read: slowest) time of year for a baseball fan. But, now we have pitchers and catchers in Arizona and Florida, and I'm back in business another installment of YouTube Friday a lot of new content planned for the near future.

Jim Thome watching Oprah talking about douching. I wish I could make this up! (Thank you Sox Machine!)


An umpire gets distracted in this old Twix commercial…


Mark Prior speaking at Cubs Convention


I guess if I had to have a root canal, I'd like to have it done at the ballpark…


Cliff Floyd competing for a job in Spring Training…in 1994

I got the 2007 Bill James Handbook for Christmas and it’s absolutely awesome. I’m actually mad at myself for not getting one of these until this year! At first glance, this book might seem like just another reference book that you pick up here or there for a tidbit of information. However, there’s so much information crammed into the 459 pages that you can sit down with this book and get lost for hours. In fact, I found so much great information in this book that I wanted to share with you 10 of the most interesting things I learned while reading this year’s Bill James Handbook. So, with some props to Studes, here goes nothing…

1) All Major Leaguers named Conor are awesome.
Ok, so there’s only one…but still, Conor Jackson is awesome. In his first full season in The Show, Jackson hit .291/.368/.441 and I think he’ll improve this season. It wouldn’t surprise me to see him hit .300/.400/.500. The NL West is going to be a dogfight this season, but with Jackson in a lineup that will also include Carlos Quinten, Stephen Drew and Chris Young – the Diamondbacks’ future is looking mighty bright.

2) Vlad The Impaler
It’s absolutely ridiculous how much Vladimir Guerrero kills left-handed pitchers. In 147 AB against southpaws last season, Vlad hit .401/.483/.687! Wow...good thing the M’s rotation next year will have at least two lefty starters (maybe three if Jake Woods cracks the rotation).

3) Princess Clutch
I did a double-take when I saw this, but do you know who led the Majors in batting average during “close and late” situations last season? David Ortiz? Nope. Derek Jeter, Joe Mauer or David Wright? No, no and no. That’s right…it was Princess Willie and his .431 average. Seriously.

4) The Most Underrated Player in Baseball?
I’ve written before about how much I like Grady Sizemore, but I didn’t realize he was the only American League hitter on the right side of the defensive spectrum in the top 10 in Isolated Slugging Percentage. Sizemore, who hit .290/.375/.533 this season as a 24-year-old, also plays solid defense up the middle, is an excellent baserunner and is locked up through the next five years at an average annual value of only $4.29M. He’s certainly one of the most underrated players in the game.

5) Lance Berkman has a soft side.
Lance Berkman is a switch hitter. But, he’s like two different players, depending on which side of the plate he steps up to. Against right-handed pitchers, Berkman is a beast, hitting .335/.438/.704. From the right side, he comes way back down to Earth, hitting only .266/.374/.416. The OBP is still solid from the right side, but there’s a huge drop in his average and slugging. Which players have abandoned switch hitting in the middle of their career? Granted, I’m not suggesting that Berkman should do this – not yet, at least. I’m just curious as to how often it happens and what the results have been.

6) Speaking of not hitting lefties…
I didn’t notice this during the season, but Richie Sexson had a nasty reverse platoon going – he was horrendous against left-handed pitchers. In fact, no other right-handed batter with 100+ at-bats against lefties put up a worse batting average than Sexson’s pathetic .204. Checking out his ESPN player page, it looks like this is just a one-year fluke…let’s just hope that’s all it is!

7) Can Eduardo Perez play left field?
I’m kidding…well, sort of. Raul Ibanez put up very impressive numbers last year despite vanishing during his 185 at-bats against left-handed pitchers (.243/.301/.362). Just like Richie Sexson, this is the first year that Ibanez has looked that bad against lefties, so hopefully it’s a fluke and not the beginning of a trend…

8) While we’re talking about Ibanez…
I found this both surprising and disturbing, but Mariners’ “Player Acquisition Consultant,” Mat Olkin ranked Raul Ibanez as the third-best defensive left fielder in all of baseball – ahead of Dave Roberts, Carl Crawford and Jason Bay, among many others. Now, as we all know, defensive statistics are a murky subject, but that just seems way, way too high. Ibanez ranked eighth as voted on by the nine other experts in the panel. However, he ranked 23rd in David Pinto’s Probabilistic Model of Range and was one of the worst defenders according to 215 ballots on TangoTiger’s Fan Scouting Report. But, you can’t accuse Olkin of playing favorites, because he didn’t rank Ichiro as the best defensive right fielder. Hmm…

9) I didn’t think he was league average at anything!
Another surprise came for me when I looked at the fascinating baserunning statistics. Would you believe that Ichiro is a league-average base runner? It sure took me by surprise. Now, this doesn’t factor in Ichiro’s 45 stolen bases in 47 attempts. No, this is just looking at how went from station to station and how often he took advantage of taking the extra base. Despite being one of the fastest players in baseball, Ichiro doesn’t take the extra base all that often. We know that he plays conservatively – presumably out of fear (or intelligent foresight) to not risk getting injured. Would I like to see Ichiro be a better baserunner and take more extra bases? Of course I would! Am I going to hold it against him that he doesn’t? Naw…he’s Ichiro!

10) If a player hits well in a limited role in Kansas City, does it make a sound?
Esteban who? That would probably be the answer if you asked most baseball fans if they have heard about Esteban German. But German put up pretty impressive numbers (.326/.422/.459) over 279 at-bats for the Royals last season. Already 28 years old, expectations shouldn’t be too high for German – especially because last year’s performance doesn’t sync up with his previous track record. But, he was a useful part on a miserable team, playing every position on the diamond except for right field and catcher.

Seriously...buy this book. You won't regret it!

Happy Friday, everyone! Because watching too many videos will rot your brain, here are some interesting things to read over the weekend, as well. Enjoy!

How many Dodger Dogs can you eat?
The Dodgers have announced that their right field bleachers will now sell for $40 (instead of $10) but will include all-you-can-eat hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, peanuts and soft drinks!

Who needs to start preparing a speech?
Jerry Crasnick previews the next three Hall of Fame Classes.

Griffey hangs out in the Bahamas…
"Mini Me" from the WBRS Sports Blog ran into Ken Griffey Jr. in the Bahamas. Read about his encounter here.

Phew…dodged that bullet! Apparently, the Mariners offered Zito a 6-year, $99M deal. That tidbit is about halfway down in this column.

Real GM Baseball examines the five worst moves of the off season.
Except, because of the Mariners, he couldn't narrow it down to just five…

Seat of dreams… The Royals are letting fans have the opportunity to sit in Buck O’Neil’s seat next season.

This parrot has been trained to say “Yankees rule!” and “Red Sox stink!” (insert bird-brain joke here)


Here’s a guy named Miller Jones winning the $100,000 Mariners pre-game contest. I think they should do a promotion where, if you can throw the ball through the cutout, you get Julio Mateo’s spot on the roster…


Cal Ripken Jr. hanging out on some dude’s couch 25 years ago!


Funny Tri-City Valley Cats (Astros short-season affiliate) commercial


Home video of Mets prospect Carlos Gomez hitting a double in the Arizona Fall League

With the holiday madness and everything, I forgot to put up YouTube Friday for two weeks in a row. So, here are 10 more videos to hold you over until I return to actually putting words back on this site!

There’s no crying in baseball! Classic…


Japanese babe Hoshino Aki throwing out the first pitch…


An interesting tribute to Mark Grace


The Sacramento RiverCats have combined two of my favorite things to watch: baseball and Project Runway!


MLB 2K7 trailer! This looks niiiiice. Check out Felix & Ichiro!


Jason Latimer does some magic tricks for a White Sox commercial.


Ryan Dempster impersonating Harry Caray


Tony Gwynn dropping some knowledge about Deep-Vein Thrombosis…


Jonathan Papelbon auctioning off a guitar at “Hot Stove, Cool Music”


I think I could dedicate an entire week to Nick Swisher videos (I know Deanna wouldn’t complain!), but here’s his Homerun Handshake with Milton Bradley…

Since there was no YouTube Friday on the 15th due to the power outages in the Seattle area, here’s a double-dose of YouTube Friday right before Christmas! Enjoy and have a happy holiday season!

Matsuzaka’s press conference


Maybe Mark McGwire can get into the wrestling Hall of Fame?


A little reminder as to why they’re called the “tools of ignorance”…


Here’s a movie trailer for a documentary about two Dominican teenagers that want to play in the Major Leagues.


This guy can juggle 5 baseball bats! It’s awesome…


Tulane pitcher Brandon Gomes pitching in the Cape Cod league


Reading Rainbow goes to Spring Training with the 1989 Oakland A’s


Here’s an old commercial that has Pete Rose singing. Now, if you’re thinking to yourself, “I didn’t know Pete Rose could sing,” that’s because he can’t!


Hey look…these guys made a robot that hits like Willie Bloomquist!


At home with Barry Zito! What channel is this show on? I think my dad would really enjoy it!

Hey guys – as you may have already noticed, posting will be sporadic around here until at least after Christmas. But, it is Friday, and you know what that means…another YouTube Friday here at StopTheWave.com! Here goes…

All 41 of Seung Yeop Lee’s home runs!


The weekly nut shot video!


Recently signed by the White Sox, here’s Po-Yu Lin pitching in high school.


Is this real? If it is, it’s really awesome! Can anyone please translate the dialog, perhaps?


I’ve seen this 100 times and I’m sure you have too, but it never gets old, does it?

YouTube Friday is actually on time this week! All of these videos are baseball related, but they’re all funny videos instead of the usual mix of great plays and funny videos. Enjoy them & have a great weekend!

The gyroball does exist! ☺


Don’t try to break a baseball bat with your head.


I posted this a long time ago, but whatever…it’s worth seeing again! (NSFW)


The worst first pitch in the history of first pitches!


Ladies and Gentlemen…SANDFROG!

Bloomquist getting his inexplicable extension got my creative juices flowing and persuaded me to write parody lyrics to Chamillionaire’s song, “Ridin’.” Weird Al already spoofed this song, but here’s my version about Willie Bloomquist!

White n’ Dirty
They see me playin’
They hatin’
But stupid fans love me ‘cause I’m white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
You know I’m always gettin’ dirty
Yeah, I’m just so white n’ dirty


My average’s so low
I’m swingin’
And missin...but I’m still white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
'Cause I'm just so white n' dirty
You know I’m always gettin’ dirty
Yeah, I’m just so white n’ dirty


It’s impossible to keep my jersey clean
My average is so low it can hardly be seen
I had a field in my backyard when I was a teen
But giving me 250 At-bats is just obscene
I fill Kitsap County with glee
In ’99 I was a third-round draftee
Out of Arizona State Univ-er-sity
Barry Zito should be embarrassed by me


Yeah, I make fifth starters look like Halladay
But there isn’t a position I can’t play
The Ignitor’s the best Willie nickname since Say Hey
Can you believe I was on Team USA?
I’m signed through ‘08 and it’s quid pro quo
I hit in college, but I can’t as a pro
But I can steal a base because I’m not slow
Or just warm the bench for Ichiro, fo’ sho!


They see me hustlin’
I’m scrappy
And all the fans love me ‘cause I’m white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
You know I’m always gettin’ dirty
Yeah, I’m just so white n’ dirty


I can ground out or fly out, but sac bunts – you know I collect ‘em
With a runner on first, you know I gotta advance him
It’s the little things that don’t show up in a box score
I get a toungebath from the local media
Stop editing my Wikipedia
Some fans think I can play really well
But if I play in front of a scout, I’ll have them ROTFLOL


I’ve got no business in the Major Leagues
But on 9-1-02 I got the call
I hit .455 but the sample size was small
And Jarrod Washburn’s now my dogg, yo
My baseball skills are a little whack
Would I be this popular if I was black?
If the game is close, you better hope my bat stays in the rack
Pop, Pop…damn fly outs to the warning track!
(and Rizzs just had a heart attack!)


I’m scrappy in the extreme
Clutch just like David Ortiz
If you need a sub, then I’m your scrub
And I was voted “Worst Player in MLB”
The only pitcher I didn’t think was hard
Is Barry Zito, who I twice took yard
An extra-base hit for me is rare
Guys in Tacoma know my salary’s unfair


Another 0 for 4
With three strikeouts
But it’s OK ‘cause I’m white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
You know I’m always gettin’ dirty
Yeah, I’m just so white n’ dirty


My average’s so low
I’m swingin’
And missin...but I’m still white n’ dirty
‘Cause I’m just so white n’ dirty
'Cause I'm just so white n' dirty
You know I’m always gettin’ dirty
Yeah, I’m just so white n’ dirty