No No: A Dockumentary Film Review

Coming into the film ‘No No: A Dockumenatry’ there were only two things I knew about former Major League Baseball pitcher Dock Ellis. The first was that he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and the second was that he once pitched a no-hitter while tripping on LSD. It’s what he’s most known for and was the main reason why this documentary was made. I figured there wasn’t much else to him however the no-hitter was only a small part of his life and career.

The film tells us a bit about Ellis’ childhood and how he was a perceived troublemaker. This was the same reputation he’d get while pitching in the big leagues as he was a bit of a social renegade during the tumultuous 1970s. Rather than driving loud cars like when he was in high school, Ellis was a bad boy in the sense that he stood up and more importantly spoke out about racial prejudice in baseball. About 25 years had passed since Jackie Robinson‘s first game yet those biases still existed. Ellis was apparently one of the few to acknowledge it and it made him a leader.

Ellis was far more than a man who took acid and played sports. He was eccentric in many parts of his life during a time period when black men weren’t allowed to have soul. Ellis had plenty of it and the influence spread across the Pirates’ locker room predating the “We Are Family” teams of the latter part of the decade.

The story of Ellis was shocking at times. Included was a violent outburst that almost loses any sympathy for the film’s hero. Dealing with fact, the filmmakers appropriately moved onto Ellis’ redemption post playing days. One thing we are never told about Dock is how much he helped others dealing with the same addictions he had. After playing baseball and having to lie about all of the behind the scenes with drugs and alcohol, Ellis was finally allowed to be honest and do some good.

Unfortunately not enough footage of Ellis playing was available in the archive as we are treated to what feels like the same clips over and over. At times it felt like Ellis documented his road trips on acid more than the MLB did their games. This is to no fault of the filmmakers as they had to work with what is available. This will certainly not be a challenge with any of today’s players as every error or outburst they have on the field is recorded.

More than a story about a junkie athlete, this was a film about the culture. I found it most fascinating exactly how many players were using greenies and the affect they had. It made me further appreciate how much concentration just one cup of coffee can give me.

This is a movie for baseball fans and historians. While the story isn’t completely set on chronological order and comes off a little strange, this is something worth adding to your Netflix queue.

Innings Eaters: MLB News for 3/30/2015 – Opening Day Preview, Bench Clearing Brawls, and More!

Here’s what you missed over at Innings Eaters today, Monday 3/30/2015.

I compiled a satirical list of the worst jobs in the 2015 MLB season. Which five jobs do I think are the worst? READ MORE

2014 Comeback Player of the Year Award winners Casey McGehee and Chris Young are going to have very different 2015 seasons. What can we expect from these two? READ MORE

The 2015 MLB season begins next Sunday night when the St. Louis Cardinals take on the Chicago Cubs. What can we get excited about for the first game of the season? READ MORE

By Dirk Hansen (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

A bench clearing brawl took place in a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates. Who was involved and why did it happen? READ MORE

Until tomorrow!

Jihadi John a Pittsburgh Pirates’ Fan

It’s never a good thing when terrorism enters the world of Major League Baseball. Thankfully at the center of this controversy, it’s all about a hat.

An image of the man behind the Jihadi John mask has him wearing a Pittsburgh Pirates’ cap. Of course, as hip-hop culture has taught us, this doesn’t guarantee his support of the Bucs. He may just like the colors or the letter P.

Of course, the Pirates are disgusted by this. Any team would be and rightfully so.

From a lighter standpoint, I’m insulted because I highly doubt Jihadi John could name 10 players on the Pirates. I’m not sure what the story behind the hat is at all, but I know I could beat him at Pirates’ trivia.

So I issue an open challenge to you, Jihadi John. You versus me in a best of 21 trivia contest about the Pirates. If you win, you get to wear whatever hats you want and I’ll join your “cause.” If I win, you can never wear the hat of a professional sports team you know nothing about plus you have to retire from terrorism.

I’m waiting J.J. You know where to reach me.

Vance Worley’s Role with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2015

Where does Vance Worley fit in with the 2015 Pittsburgh Pirates?

By BaseballChick16 (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Five Statistical Facts about Andrew McCutchen

Where would the Pittsburgh Pirates be without Andrew McCutchen? My guess is their playoff drought would still continue and a few pitchers would sleep better at night. A still relatively young career, these are five statistical facts we already know about the most dangerous pirate of the 21st Century.

League Leader

McCutchen may never end up as one of those guys to blow you away with statistics in any one given year. He reminds me of Robinson Cano in that you can expect him to frequently be in the top in several offensive categories. So far we have seen McCutchen lead the league in hits with 194 in 2012. We have also seen him lead the league in on-base percentage as well as on-base plus slugging in 2014. Expect more league leading statistics for him to come.

2013 MVP

The 2013 season for McCutchen was not his best, however, it was the one he managed to win the MVP Award thanks largely to the contributions he gave his team. McCutchen had 185 hits, 38 doubles, 21 home runs, 84 RBIs, 27 stolen bases, a .317 batting average, and a .404 on-base percentage. Despite having weaker numbers almost everywhere than Paul Goldschmidt, McCutchen earned 28 of the 30 MVP votes. The other two went to Yadier Molina.

Fielding

McCutchen started off his career with a lot of praise for his fielding ability. While still a good center fielder, he isn’t quite the Gold Glove caliber we though he would continue to be. His lone Gold Glove so far has come in 2012. With two consecutive seasons with 6 errors and weaker zone statistics, McCutchen may be done with the fielding awards.

What’s Missing?

The big missing piece in the statistical history of McCutchen is a season with 100 RBIs. As the guy hitting in the heart of the Pirates’ order, it’s up to him to drive in the majority of the team’s runs. In 2012, McCutchen did manage to score 107 runs. Hopefully the Pirates can find the ideal leadoff hitter to get on base ahead of McCutchen for years to come.

On-Base Percentage

I’ve hinted briefly at what a talented on-base guy McCutchen is, but allow me to be specific for a moment. His career on-base percentage is a very good .385 and increasing each season. Since 2012, McCutchen’s OBP has been between .400 and .410. He’s drawing more walks thanks to more patience and a better lineup around him. Because of this more pitchers have to deal with him on the bases.

Five Statistical Facts about Aramis Ramirez

The pride of the National League Central, third baseman Aramis Ramirez has spent his entire career within the division. Starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates before moving onto the Chicago Cubs, Ramirez appears ready to spend his final at-bats wearing a Milwaukee Brewers’ uniform. A nice career coming to a close soon, here are five statistical facts about him.

25+ Home Run and 100+ RBI Seasons

Ramirez’s career high for home runs came in 2006 when he hit 38 of them. Generally he ranged in the high 20s or low 30s which in the post-Steroid Era is often near the top of the league leaders. Specifically seeking seasons where he had 25 or more home runs and 100 or more RBIs, I find he accomplished this 7 times. They came in 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, and most recently in 2012.

All-Star Selections: 3

We may think of Ramirez as a guy constantly ranking near the top in the National League among third basemen however he only ever received 3 All-Star selections in his career. That’s what happens when Chipper Jones is your competition. Ramirez received the All-Star nod in 2005, 2008, and 2014.

By Jauerback (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

Horrible Fielder Turned Average Fielder?

A little gold must have been placed in Ramirez’s glove at some point or maybe he just happened to learn how to handle a groundball. For instance, from 1998-2002 the highest fielding percentage Ramirez had was .946 which came in a season where he committed 19 errors. In 2003 when he split time with the Pirates and Cubs he had 33 errors for a .929 fielding percentage. Ramirez eventually got a bit better, or the scorekeepers got a bit more generous, to the point where his fielding percentage is generally near the average. This can quickly be explained by the fact that his range factor has decreased significantly.

Which NL Central Opponent Did He Punish Most?

Having spent his entire career on a team in the NL Central gave Ramirez an extra opportunity to punish the pitchers in the division. His home run rankings against those teams are the Houston Astros at number one with 43, the St. Louis Cardinals at number two with 37, the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers tied at third with 34, and the Pittsburgh Pirates in fifth place with 31. Since he spent so much time with the Cubs they are closer to the middle of the pack with only 10 home runs hit against them.

Lack of Opposite Field Home Runs

Of the 369 career home runs Ramirez has going into the 2015 season, only 6 of them are credit with being hit to right field. There were however 14 to leave the yard to right center field. By comparison, Ramirez hit 193 home runs which landed in the left field bleachers, mostly at Wrigley Field as he hit 127 home runs there, about 80 more than anywhere else.

Five Statistical Facts about Pie Traynor

Pie Traynor may have the most delicious sounding name of anyone to ever put on a pair of baseball cleats. He played slightly after the Dead-ball Era for the Pittsburgh Pirates and is one of baseball’s early heroes. He still rarely gets too much credit as the home run was all the rage back then. For those, including myself, unfamiliar with him here are five statistical facts about one of the men to play in baseball’s very first All-Star Game.

100+ RBIs

Traynor only reached double-digits in home runs once when he hit 12 in 1923. This didn’t stop him from driving in plenty of runs. There were 7 seasons where Traynor finished with 100 or more runs batted in. The highest came in 1928 when with only 3 home runs he had 124 RBIs.

Top 10 MVP Finish

Never an MVP, always an MVP-maid, Traynor seemed to always challenge the eventual winners for the award. He finished in the Top 10 of the voting 6 times. The closest to winning was in 1928 when he finished sixth.

Triples

Traynor seemed to always find a way to place the ball somewhere that would allow him to use his speed to earn himself a triple. His league leading 19 in 1923 was the most he would have in a season. This doesn’t mean he was done though. From 1922-1934, in every year except for two Traynor had 10 or more triples. His 162 Game Average for his career rests at 14.

Postseason Batting

Traynor was fortunate enough to play in the National League so facing the New York Yankees only came in the World Series. Traynor was able to play in two World Series; the first in 1925 against the Washington Senators and the second in 1927 when the Yankees swept his Pirates. Traynor fared better against the Senators, hitting .346 in the 7-game series. Against the Yankees he was 3 for 15 without a run batted in.

Strikeouts

If you want a laugh you should look up all of the strikeout statistics for Traynor. He was as great as anyone at avoiding the K. The most Traynor ever struck out in a season was 28, which he did twice. In 1928, Traynor had 569 plate appearances and struck out only 10 times. Are you done laughing yet? I’m not. Traynor struck out only 278 times in his whole career. As of the end of the 2014 season, there have been 6 times when a batter has struck out over 200 times in a season with several others challenging. It took Traynor his career to match them.

A Pittsburgh Pirate’s Life for Jung-Ho Kang

The mystery team has been revealed in the hunt for Korean shortstop Jung-Ho Kang. The team that posted over $5 million to talk about signing him for a couple more million was the Pittsburgh Pirates.

If Kang is everything we think he might be, the Pirates could quite possibly have their first power-hitting shortstop in history. The light-hitting Jack Wilson was the most frequent man for the position in the 2000s and previous to him it was Jay Bell during the 1990s.

Shortstop is not a position of weakness for the Pirates in terms of history as one of baseball’s greatest, Honus Wagner, played there in the early part of the previous century. In the last 100 years though, only Arky Vaughan and Dick Groat played more games for the team at short than Wilson and Bell. Both were far from power hitters and this will certainly be a nice change for the Pirates if Kang actually does join the team, which would be a complete disaster should he not.

Kang on the Pirates would be a nice upgrade from Jody Mercer. While Mercer is a very respectable player, he’s more of the traditional type of player the Pirates have had at the position. To reach the next level, like winning a playoff series, putting Kang into this lineup might be the perfect ingredient.

The Story Behind the ‘Graph: Bryan Bullington

The first overall pick in the 2002 MLB Draft belonged to the Pittsburgh Pirates. They chose to go with pitcher Bryan Bullington. Like many others the Pirates selected in the first round in the early 2000s, Bullington has a much shorter career than they had hoped for. I do remember Bullington being a very friendly guy at the time he signed this while with the Altoona Curve. It definitely didn’t hurt that I only bugged him with one baseball card to sign.

The Story Behind the ‘Graph: Sean Burnett

A first round pick in the 2000 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, Sean Burnett was one of many players the Bucs took in that era to never reach their potential. He’s still pitching though and has had a fairly successful career as a relief pitcher. This particular autograph was obtained when he was a pitcher for the Altoona Curve.