Throughout the 2018 baseball season, I have been sending baseball cards to numerous MLB players, past and present, through the mail. I am happy to say I have achieved a pretty high success rate, and I want to share my collection with YOU! Premiering in November, I will be sharing my autographs through a weekly photo blog format. Stay tuned!
Tag: 2018
The Bleacher Creature’s 2018 Award Predictions
Here are Jacoby Nolnaho’s predictions for the main BBWAA awards for the 2018 season:
MVP
National League- Christian Yelich
American League- Mike Trout
Cy Young
National League- Jacob deGrom
American League- Blake Snell
Rookie of the Year
National League- Ronald Acuna Jr.
American League- Miguel Andujar
Manager of the Year
National League- Craig Counsell
American League- Alex Cora
National League Cy Young Tensions
As of August 25, with five weeks left of the regular season, the National League Cy Young of 2018 is certainly gaining traction. The National League possible front runners are the Mets’ Jacob deGrom, Phillies’ Aaron Nola, and the reigning winner, Max Scherzer. So far, Scherzer is 16-6 with a 2.13 ERA and a league leading 244 strikeouts in 181.2 innings. Nola is 15-3 with 169 strikeouts, all while matching Scherzer’s ERA. deGrom is currently has 214 strikeouts and is leading the NL with an immaculate 1.77 ERA. However, deGrom only has a .500 record (8-8). His lack of wins looks bad to the eye, but his minimal ERA contradicts the stat. In an age where Sabermetrics matter and people want to “kill the win,” deGrom has a better chance of winning this year than past decades. Scherzer is a better candidate than Nola because Scherzer has more innings under his belt, more strikeouts, and more wins while sustaining an identical ERA. So, the National Cy Young is up for grabs between Scherzer and deGrom.
MLB TTM Status 2018
This year, I have adapted a new way of autograph collecting; through the mail autograph requests. Basically, I send out a letter, a card to be signed, and a self addressed stamped envelope to both former and current baseball players. As of July 17, I have sent out 32 letters. Out of the 32, I have gotten 11 back. I have gotten back Rob Manfred, Pat Neshek, Ken Singleton, Danny Duffy, Raisel Iglesias, Brad Ziegler, Chris Iannetta, Ryan Goins, Adeiny Hechavarria, Juan Gonzalez, and Ryne Sandberg. Of the 21 I still have out there, Mark Teixeira, Clayton Kershaw, Todd Frazier, and Greg Bird highlight the pending requests.
MLB Sent Something Amazing To Me!
On Monday, April 30, I received a package in the mail from the offices of Major League Baseball in New York City. Approximately ten days earlier, I wrote a letter to Commissioner Rob Manfred telling him how much I enjoyed baseball. I only asked for an autographed business card, but I got much more.
The package was sent first class in a bubble mailer. The shipping cost totaled at $3.75, which was a surprise since I did not send any money in. When I opened it, I found my requested signed business card along with a full sized official Major League Baseball. The baseball was signed in blue Sharpie across the sweet spot.
This is only my second through the mail autograph return, and I am really grateful. Five years ago I wrote a letter to Ken Singleton and got a signed 8×10 glossy picture. Acts like these make the game stronger and get more fans involved.
BP Report with Jacoby Nolnaho: 4/6/18
On April 6, 2018, I went to my first baseball game of 2018. As usual, it was the Yankees hosting the Orioles at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees have now introduced a three hour batting practice block. In other words, on select Friday home games, the gates will open three hours before game time instead of the traditional two. This is great for ballhawks like me, giving us an extra hour of opportunities to catch balls. Using the Clear Lane, I was able to get into the stadium a tad before anybody else. Only the right and left field seats were open, but I was still in luck.
Within ten minutes of getting in, a worn baseball was sitting approximately twenty feet from the wall. Yankees reliever Adam Warren was making his way to the dugout when I exclaimed, “Hey Adam, over here!” Warren turned and threw a liner right to me. I did not realize I caught the ball until I turned around and saw it in my glove. I quickly turned around and thanked Warren along with giving him a thumbs up. Later during BP, I ran into Zack Hample (once again). I did not want to bother him because he was swarmed with ten year olds, so I simply said hello and moved on.
The game was long and very slow. The game went 14 innings with the Yankees leaving lots of men on base. I was originally sitting in the Budweiser Party Deck, but as the game moved on, I transitioned to the Toyota Terrace. I was over the Yankee bullpen when Orioles hitter Pedro Alvarez launched a game winning grand slam into the right field stands. The Yankees ended up losing to a final score of 7-4. I was happy the game ended since I was there right when the gates opened up until the final out. I was actually at Yankee Stadium well over ten hours.
Overall, I had a lot of fun and hope this game is just a beginning for good things to come in the 2018 Major League Baseball season.
Hall of Fame Ballot 2018
As you know, I am not in the BBWAA, so I cannot vote for the Hall of Fame or awards such as Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, and MVP. Instead, I share my thoughts and opinions with you through The Bleacher Creature. This year, Jim Thome, Chipper Jones, Vladimir Guerrero, and Trevor Jones got inducted. If I could vote, my ballot would look like this:
- Chipper Jones
- Jim Thome
- Vladimir Guerrero
- Trevor Hoffman
- Mike Mussina
- Edgar Martinez
- Billy Wagner
- Fred McGriff
- Omar Vizquel
- Curt Schillling
Chipper Jones, one of the greatest switch hitters of all time, is a no-brainer with his 468 home runs and MVP. Jim Thome also fits in this class because of his 612 home runs and record 13 walk off home runs. The oddballs are Mike Mussina and Billy Wagner. Billy Wagner was one of the most dominant relievers in Major League history by striking out 1,196 batters in 903 innings. He also collected a solid 422 saves and 2.31 ERA. Mike Mussina won 270 games, struck out 2,813 batters, and posted a 3.68 ERA over an 18 year career that saw him pitch 3,562.2 innings.
How to make MLB the Show Better
MLB the Show is up there with other sports video games. Despite its success, San Diego Studio needs to make a few improvements. This year, there has been a bat lag glitch that really needs to be fixed. Also, some different phrases should be used. I am tired of Dan Plesac saying Chris Sale and Max Scherzer are pitch to contact guys. Their needs to be more big brands like Coca Cola or McDonald’s instead of some bootleg made up brand. The Show should also take an approach similar to Madden 18’s Longshot. Longshot provides more realistic off the field interactions that would fit perfectly in baseball. I agree with the coverboy of Aaron Judge on The Show 18 but a think a cover with Harper and Trout back-to-back would be nice.