crazy but true

After an agonizing week capped by a pathetic 6-0 shutout against the Royals on Monday, I prepared to write a blog about the demise of the Yankees. A busy work schedule left me no time to write it. Two games later things look slightly better. The Yankees hit rock-bottom Monday night and hopefully the only way to go is up.

This season has left us no shortage of oddities. Here are a few stats that are worth a second look. Let me know of any others that you find.

- Winning cures all? The Cleveland Indians are off to a hot start, holding a surprisingly comfortable division lead. But despite being in first place, the Indians are dead-last in attendance. What gives? Meanwhile, the Phillies are struggling and currently in the division cellar. As you might guess, they lead all baseball in attendance.

- Game attendance isn't a number most people notice so how about some more interesting figures: the percent that ballparks fill up when a road team comes to town, or in other words, the road teams that draw the best crowds. #1 is the Cubs, and #2 is the Padres. Both teams are in last place. Logical, of course.

- As Nancy Kerrigan says, "why, whyyyyyyyyy?" It's not a statistic you have a lot of control over perhaps, but the numbers for times players get hit by a pitch is eye-opening. After 46 games the Seattle Mariners have been hit by a pitch 3, count them, 3 times. Meanwhile, those Tampa Bay Rays have been hit by 29 stray pitches. That's 10 times as many incidents.

- Must be the coaching: the same team leads the American League in strikeouts, times grounding into double plays, and worst stolen base percentage. They are 2nd to last in most errors. Naturally, this is the Baltimore Orioles, who happen to have the best record in the AL.

- Mets ownership decided that the field in their new stadium was too big and too hard to hit a homer in so they moved the fences in closer before the season. Last year the Mets averaged 0.67 home runs per game. This season? Less (0.56 per game).

- Key to winning is score more than your opponent, right? The Rangers have this figured out. They lead the American League in runs scored and fewest runs allowed.

- Time to move: the Mariners are batting .249 on the road and .201 at home.

- Pitching to win? The Phillies and Angels pitchers have had the most quality starts (6+IP, 3 ER or fewer). Both are in last place.

- Tigers are definitely off to a bad start. One reason could be that batting average of .129 with the bases loaded. Yikes!

- Why bother? Pinch hitters for the Blue Jays are 1-19 (.053). The Indians have only used 6 pinch hitters and don't have a hit.

- Season slump: Rickie Weeks is batting a woeful .155 (coincidentally, after 155 at bats).

- Thanks, guys: Statistically, Red Sox Clay Buchholz has been the worst starting pitcher to still have a job. He also has a 4-2 record. How is that? 12.22 runs of support per game, yeah, that would do it.

- Compare that to poor Ervin Santana, who's Angels got shut out in 5 straight games that he pitched.

- So if each team has 5 starting pitchers that would be 150 current starting pitchers in baseball. Yankees' Phil Hughes (11), Hiroki Kuroda (10), and Ivan Nova (10) are all in the Top 8 for most home runs allowed. Sabathia (8) isn't far behind.

- Batters are hitting .167 against Nationals' Gio Gonzalez this year. That's nasty.