Slightly Better than Replacement Level
Welcome to the first edition of Unaffiliated Happenings. For those who missed the question about whether I should do this, here’s a quick breakdown of what we’re doing here. On a semi-weekly basis, I’ll release an Unaffiliated Happenings column where I’ll break down three or so of the most interesting unaffiliated news stories from the […]
Sometimes we don’t appreciate what we have even when it’s right in front of us. Despite Julio Franco having a long Major League Baseball career and the majority of that career taking place during my formative baseball watching years I never realized how great of a player he actually was. It wasn’t until recently that […]
Though the same age as its Japanese counterpart, the Pacific League (JPPL) sure feels a heck of a lot younger. History The JPPL was originally known as the Taiheiyo Baseball Union until 1980 when it officially adopted the Pacific League moniker. Since that time the JPPL has operated as a six-team league, and has always […]
Next up in the League Primer Series is one of the two farm team leagues that operate in Japan. The Eastern League (JPEL) begins in play in a little under a month. History The JPEL has been around since the early 1960s when it was created to allow for the two main leagues in Nippon […]
One of the ideas often put forth in baseball circles is that going from Major League Baseball to Nippon Professional Baseball will result in instant success. The general context behind this idea is that MLB players are so good that even those MLB players who can no longer cut it in that league will excel […]