Not Living Up to the Hype

The 2006 draft featured several players who have accumulated their fair share of accolades. Tim Lincecum drafted 10th overall won back to back Cy Young Awards in 2008 and 2009 along with World Series victories in 2010 and 2012. Clayton Kershaw was selected 7th overall and has Cy Young awards for the 2011 and 2013 season. Max Scherzer was selected 11th overall and won the 2013 Cy Young Award. Finally third baseman Evan Longoria was drafted 3rd overall and has appeared in 3 All Star Games, won the 2008 Rookie of the Year Award and 2 Gold Glove Awards. These players are definitely living up to their hype, but who was drafted first overall in the 2006 draft?

Luke Hochevar

Luke Hochevar was drafted first overall in the 2006 draft and signed with the Kansas City Royals for 4 years $5.3 Million. From 2008-2012 Hochevar pitched 758 innings to a 5.45 ERA. In 128 games pitched Hochevar started 127 games. His ERA never dropped below 4.68 and his WHIP over that time period was 1.407. Hochevar was nothing short of a disappointment for the Royals from 2008-2012, but the tides did shift in 2013.

Hochevar was moved to the bullpen in 2013 and found much success for the Kansas City Royals. We saw Tim Lincecum find a lot of success out of the bullpen for the San Francisco Giants in the 2012 playoffs. Hochevar pitched 70 innings in 2013 all out of the bullpen totaling 58 total appearances.  Hochevar's ERA dropped dramatically to the lowest it has ever been; 1.92. Hochevar did total 82 strikeouts over season also reaching 10.5 K/9 the highest of his career. His H/9 and BB/9 also dropped to his career best.

The chance for Hochevar to be as successful as the other players drafted in the 2006 draft has past, but he is definitely rising to the occasion as he begins to work out of the bullpen for the Royals. Along with several other critical arms in the Royals rotation and bullpen, Luke Hochaver may finally live up to some of his hype.

2013 Schedules

In 2013 the Astros will move to the American League West. That made some difficulty in the schedules. Now there are 15 teams in each league and 5 teams in each division. Think about it... 15 teams in one league and they each have to play each other, that means one team is not playing. So scheduled inter league games are unavoidable throughout the whole season. For example The Yankees play The Diamond Backs April 16-18 and The Giants September 20-22.

With the new schedule a team will play 76 games against their own division (19 games against each rival), 66 games against other teams in their league, and 20 inter league games.

The schedule makes division races more intense, while allowing fans to see other teams in the MLB. The schedule works out nicely and 2013 looks like a promising season. To see your team's schedule for 2013 click HERE.

The 2013 All Star Game will be at the home of the New York Mets, Citi Field.

Possible Hall of Fame Inductees in the Near Future

The 2012 Hall of Fame class consisted of one person, Barry Larkin, but in the near future some big names are coming up, with a lot of controversy.

Frank Thomas (The Big Hurt)- Thomas played 19 seasons, 16 of them with the Chicago White Sox. over those 19 seasons he posted a .301 batting average, .419 on base percentage, 521 home runs, and a .555 slugging. I think there will be some controversy, because he was convicted of steroid use in his career. This is one of the many problems of the steroid era.  All in all Thomas will get inducted within 5 years of eligibility.

Greg Maddux- Without a doubt Maddux will be inducted on his first ballot. He dominated the 1990's and 2000's pitching 23 total seasons mostly with the Braves (11 seasons) and the Cubs (10 Seasons), but pitched 2 seasons each with the Dodgers and Padres. 355 wins is a ridiculous number, I don't think we will see a player hit 350 wins for another 20 years or so if that. A lifetime 3.16 era and 3371 strikeouts. His best season was 1996 when he held a 1.63 era, 209.2 innings pitched, and 181 strikeouts with just 28 walks.

Mike Mussina (Moose) - Mussina pitched 18 seasons, 10 with the Orioles and 8 with the Yankees. He collected 270 wins, a 3.68 era, 2813 strikeouts, and 6 gold gloves. He may not make it in the first ballot, but he will absolutely make in by 2017. He is a fan favorite, getting his first 20 win season in his final season was something really magical. He was known for his durability and incredible fielding.

Roger Clemens (The Rocket) - 24 seasons, 13 with the Red Sox, 6 with the Yankees, 2 with the Blue Jays, and 3 with the Astros.  354 wins, 3.12 era, 4672 strikeouts, and 7 cy young awards will not get Clemens into the hall of fame for a long time. Until he admits that he took steroids, he will not be admitted. Once he admits it, then I will give him 10 years to get admitted, just because there is no on better to admit that year.

Barry Bonds- Bonds played 22 seasons in the MLB, 15 for the Giants and 7 for the Pirates. Being known as possibly the best hitter all time, The son off Bobby Bonds and godson of Say Hey Kid (Willie Mays) Barry posted 762 home runs (The most all time) a .444 on base percentage, a .298 batting average, .607 slugging, 1996 rbis, and 2558 walks. Barry Bonds will never get into the hall of fame. His constant denial of steroid usage will keep him out. All he would have to do is apologize and he would be admitted.

Pete Rose (Charlie Hustle) - Pete has been eligible for 21 years for hall of fame induction, but he was denied again and again, for gambling on games he took part in as a manager and a player. he has 4256 career hits. Come on Pete, just apologize. The same would go for Shoeless Joe Jackson, although he is deceased taking part in the Chicago Black Sox scandal withheld him from the Hall of Fame.