Is texas the most underrated team in baseball?

[dominik]

What do you think? in the last two years they easily won their division (which adimittedly was quite weak compared to this year when it improved quite a bit) and won the american league in the playoffs.

they lost the WS twice but I would say they were a better team than the 2010 giants and 2011 cards they were just unlucky to run into a hot team twice.
this year they are off to a hot start again.

and yet still nobody is talking about them. are they underrated compared to teams like detroit, NY, Boston, LA angels und some NL teams?

I'm not saying they are the best team in baseball but I would definitely rate them top4. but there are a lot of teams that get talked about more.

[PlanetZoltan]

I think they are easily the best in the bigs right now. theyve lost three games. One by one run against Verlander. The other two they lost leads late.

They would get talked about a lot more if the Red Sox werent off to such a dreadful start, or if Albert Pujols had hit a home run by now.

[Bothrops Atrox]

What do you think? in the last two years they easily won their division (which adimittedly was quite weak compared to this year when it improved quite a bit) and won the american league in the playoffs.

they lost the WS twice but I would say they were a better team than the 2010 giants and 2011 cards they were just unlucky to run into a hot team twice.
this year they are off to a hot start again.

and yet still nobody is talking about them. are they underrated compared to teams like detroit, NY, Boston, LA angels und some NL teams?

I'm not saying they are the best team in baseball but I would definitely rate them top4. but there are a lot of teams that get talked about more.

I don't know - they were lot of people's pre-season picks and they have been all over the news lately for their torrid start. Plus, I don't hear anybody saying that any NL team is better than any of the top 5-6 Al teams...and they are probably right.

[9RoyHobbsRF]

The 2010 Giants had the second best record in the NL which is a 16 team league
The Rangers had the fourth best record in the AL which is a 14 team league

Overall the Giants had a better record than the rangers who probably would not have went very far with out rent a pitcher Cliff Lee who the Giants beat twice anyway

plus the giants shut out the rangers twice and held them to a single run a third game, holding them to 4 , 3 and 3 hits in those 3 games, one of the more dominating pitching runs in world series history, (two of the games in the rangers small ballpark using the DH)

for all his world series glory playing in the second dead ball era, Bob Gibson had only one world series game in which he allowed less than 5 hits (and he allowed 2 runs in that game)
for all his world series glory playing in the second dead ball era, Sandy Koufax only had 2 games in which he allowed fewer than 5 hits

the 2010 sf giants had as many world series games allowing 4 or less hits than Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson combined
in 5 starts vs. the combined 9 of gibson and 7 of koufax or 16 total

3/5 = 60% in the more offensive era with DH
3/16 = 18% in the dead ball era with wide strike zone and no DH

[Captain Cold Nose]

The 2010 Giants had the second best record in the NL which is a 16 team league
The Rangers had the fourth best record in the AL which is a 14 team league

Overall the Giants had a better record than the rangers who probably would not have went very far with out rent a pitcher Cliff Lee who the Giants beat twice anyway

plus the giants shut out the rangers twice and held them to a single run a third game, holding them to 4 , 3 and 3 hits in those 3 games, one of the more dominating pitching runs in world series history, (two of the games in the rangers small ballpark using the DH)

for all his world series glory playing in the second dead ball era, Bob Gibson had only one world series game in which he allowed less than 5 hits (and he allowed 2 runs in that game)
for all his world series glory playing in the second dead ball era, Sandy Koufax only had 2 games in which he allowed fewer than 5 hits

the 2010 sf giants had as many world series games allowing 4 or less hits than Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson combined
in 5 starts vs. the combined 9 of gibson and 7 of koufax or 16 total

3/5 = 60% in the more offensive era with DH
3/16 = 18% in the dead ball era with wide strike zone and no DH

So the 2010 Giants are the most underrated team of 2012?

[9RoyHobbsRF]

I was countering the thought that they were a better team than the Giants in 2010
and the Giants just got lucky or hot

[GiambiJuice]

As a team, they may be underrated, but some of their hitters are overrated if anything, due to their bandbox of a home ballpark.

For example, in Hamilton's MVP season, he had a 1.188 OPS at home and .894 OPS on the road. An almost 300 point gap.

Ian Kinsler - for his whole career - .929 OPS at home, .728 OPS on the road. That's a 201 point difference.

Nelson Cruz - for his entire career - .932 OPS at home, .731 OPS on the road. Again, a 201 point difference. That his huge.

Michael Young, a player who often gets overrated due to his batting averages and 200-hit seasons, is a career .325 hitter and .284 hitter on the road.

These guys are good but not as good as they are given credit for.

[RaysFan_98]

As a team, they may be underrated, but some of their hitters are overrated if anything, due to their bandbox of a home ballpark.

For example, in Hamilton's MVP season, he had a 1.188 OPS at home and .894 OPS on the road. An almost 300 point gap.

Ian Kinsler - for his whole career - .929 OPS at home, .728 OPS on the road. That's a 201 point difference.

Nelson Cruz - for his entire career - .932 OPS at home, .731 OPS on the road. Again, a 201 point difference. That his huge.

Michael Young, a player who often gets overrated due to his batting averages and 200-hit seasons, is a career .325 hitter and .284 hitter on the road.

These guys are good but not as good as they are given credit for.

If there park is a bandbox what does that make the Yankees park?

[Rich the Giants fan]

As a team, they may be underrated, but some of their hitters are overrated if anything, due to their bandbox of a home ballpark.

For example, in Hamilton's MVP season, he had a 1.188 OPS at home and .894 OPS on the road. An almost 300 point gap.

Ian Kinsler - for his whole career - .929 OPS at home, .728 OPS on the road. That's a 201 point difference.

Nelson Cruz - for his entire career - .932 OPS at home, .731 OPS on the road. Again, a 201 point difference. That his huge.

Michael Young, a player who often gets overrated due to his batting averages and 200-hit seasons, is a career .325 hitter and .284 hitter on the road.

These guys are good but not as good as they are given credit for.

Texas has played 7 games at home (5-2) and 9 games on the road (8-1). They are the real deal. I picked 'em to go to the WS and I fully believe they are the best team in the AL.

[GiambiJuice]

Texas has played 7 games at home (5-2) and 9 games on the road (8-1). They are the real deal. I picked 'em to go to the WS and I fully believe they are the best team in the AL.

I agree.
........

[dominik]

As a team, they may be underrated, but some of their hitters are overrated if anything, due to their bandbox of a home ballpark.

For example, in Hamilton's MVP season, he had a 1.188 OPS at home and .894 OPS on the road. An almost 300 point gap.

Ian Kinsler - for his whole career - .929 OPS at home, .728 OPS on the road. That's a 201 point difference.

Nelson Cruz - for his entire career - .932 OPS at home, .731 OPS on the road. Again, a 201 point difference. That his huge.

Michael Young, a player who often gets overrated due to his batting averages and 200-hit seasons, is a career .325 hitter and .284 hitter on the road.

These guys are good but not as good as they are given credit for.

I agree with that somewhat but you also have to consider that the road games in the AL west are in oakland, seattle and los angeles. this might surpress road stats a little more than playing road games for example in toronto or boston.

I agree however that they don't really have superstar types (unless josh is healthy) but they have a very deep team. 1-9 can hit an 1-5 can pitch.

[Bothrops Atrox]

I agree however that they don't really have superstar types (unless josh is healthy) but they have a very deep team. 1-9 can hit an 1-5 can pitch.

When Beltre is having one of his better offensive years, he is also a legit MVP caliber player.

[Rich the Giants fan]

I agree with that somewhat but you also have to consider that the road games in the AL west are in oakland, seattle and los angeles. this might surpress road stats a little more than playing road games for example in toronto or boston.I agree however that they don't really have superstar types (unless josh is healthy) but they have a very deep team. 1-9 can hit an 1-5 can pitch.

Good point.

[Rich the Giants fan]

Very strong outing from Yu Darvish tonight, falling two outs shy of recording his first big league shutout. 8.1 innings pitched, 7 hits, 2 walks, 10 strikeouts and no runs allowed, though he leaves with a man on base.

[RaysFan_98]

Darvish looks legit