Hunt and Peck: Links of the Week

Instead of a brief introduction, I begin this Friday's post with a photograph. A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

No, this is not a cop-out because I couldn't think of anything. Don't be ridiculous. (This picture was a close second choice.)

I think it is the hat the really sells the picture for me. Yeah, the play on words is good, but that tiny, little, green hat kills me every time. It doesn't need to be there; people would get the joke. Sometimes going the extra mile is worth it.

Other Things Going On in Baseball...

• Here is a heartwarming story about the Wounded Warrior Amputee softball team taking on the Royals Coaches. - Cut 4
• More pitchers are dropping with exploding elbows. This time, it is the Oakland Athletics having to shoulder the loss. - MLB
• Grady Sizemore is still baseballing. - MLB
• The Tigers are desperately searching for a shortstop. You know who has a shortstop? Okay, fine, but just sayin'. - MLB
• Juan Uribe and Yasiel Puig take a stab a cricket. Bats were flipped. - MLB
• You know what you needed to see today? Vin Scully with a koala, or as someone, whose name I cannot recall, commented, a koala with Vin Scully. - Cut 4
• It may be cool in the Spring, but these hitters are hot. Let's hope one of these guys stays that way forever. - Sports on Earth
• These are videos of pitchers hitting triples and homers. I like this one and this one and, of course, this one. - Baseball Savant
• A thanks goes out to Big in Japan for the lead on this link. Dave Cameron looks at payroll efficiency of MLB teams by tweaking the traditional $/WAR calculation. The A's and the Rays lead the pack, with the Twins, well... not. Sorry Max. - Fangraphs
• Yordano Ventura looks pretty good, guys. - Hardball Talk
• While we are all waiting for baseball, the Dodgers and the Diamonds backs are getting a head start in Australia! The teams have been there all week doing all sorts of cool stuff, and will square off tomorrow at 4:00am EST at the Sydney Cricket Grounds. The game will be available on MLB Network. Just all part of Bud Selig's plan for world domination. - LA Times; MLB

What the Cardinals are Up To...

• Lance Lynn was paid $2,590.51 per strikeout last year. That is the least in all of baseball and totally fascist. - Baseball Savant
• Last week Mike Matheny wrote in his blog about being motivated by not making the team. - Mike Matheny
• The battle for the last rotation spot is fierce. This articles looks at the competition between Lance Lynn (who is pretty much a lock, I would think), Joe Kelly, and our "favorite", Carlos Martinez. - SI The Strike Zone
  Kelly is doing all he can do to try to win the spot - on the mound and at the plate. - MLB
• But are the competitions really competitions? Cards Fan in Cubs Land weighs in on the fairness of these competitions. - Cardinals Fan in Cubs Land
• Joe wrote earlier in the week about Adam Wainwright 's curveball usage in 2013. The ace aims to be less predictable in 2014. Thanks to flood for this link! - MLB
• It has been announced that Pete Kozma would be available for a trade. In other news, water is in fact wet! (Sorry, Pete. If it is any consolation, I like you, just not with a bat in your hands.) - Viva el Birdos
• Beyond the Box Score ranks the Cardinals top 53 prospects. They even looked at our community rankings! - Beyond the Box Score
• You may remember the link from Monday about Cardinal70's Favorite Living Cardinal Bracket Challenge? Here is an update on the results thus far. Remember to vote to help give a good sample of opinions! - Cards Conclave
• Matt Carpenter is a stud, but what is he worth in your fantasy draft? His move to third base my lower his value. Thanks for the link, flood! - Fantasy Baseball Cracker Jacks
• Baseball Prospectus has included a link to free PDF of the top ten Cardinals prospects. - Baseball Prospectus
• mmm... sure, Memphis! Very... interesting. - Cut 4

KNOW THY ENEMY...

• Hank, the new Brewers' mascot, is my new personal hero. (thanks again, flood) - FoxSports
• Jay Bruce has been sneaky good at basing balls. - Sports on Earth
• You knew this was coming. Wednesday night, in one of baseball's scarier moments, Reds pitcher Aroldis Chapman took a Salvador Perez line drive off his forehead and was carted off the field. He will have a metal plate put in his head as he broke some bones in his face and most likely sustained a concussion. The Reds expect him back around May. Enemy or not, we wish him all the best in his recovery. - MLB; MLB (Video)
  UPDATE: Surgery was successful. - MLB

Viva el Stuff...

• In the fanposts this week, dr. howl is continuing looking at and projecting members of the Cardinals roster. The latest one looks at Kolten Wong and Mark Ellis. - Viva el Birdos
• stlfan writes another wonderful post about LOOGYs compared to left-handed relievers. - Viva el Birdos
• VERY IMPORTANT! Do not forget about VEBDay! Let that Aaron Finkel guy know if you need tickets for the game! Details are in the link, so just click it and don't be lazy. - Viva el Birdos
• VEB's very own Craig "I have two first names" Edwards was on KMOX Tuesday night. He did a great job and made VEB very proud! - Viva el Birdos
• Members of the community are taking over the game recaps. So far The Continental, IHeartBoog, and santiagofish have all taken their turn and did a wonderful job! Who will be next?
• There are a few too many Oscar Taveras comparisons to another highly-touted Cardinal prospect. I need to set the record straight. OT is no Claude Romeo! - Viva el Birdos Archives
• Need to know what you missed last week? Turn to b "Homie G" h's Week in Review. - Viva el Birdos
• Missed Monday's links? They are a little stale, but I think still good. - Viva el Birdos

Other Things...

• The Blues played the... I... I cannot do this. Just go to SLGT. - St. Louis Game TIme
• SLU eeked out a victory last night, partially saving my bracket, but not really because I may have made some unwise choices in the heat of the moment. Thanks OU, thanks for Sam Bradford, but nothing else, really. - NCAA
• Wanting a job in sports? Here is an informative picture. - Work in Sports
• Viva el Five Second Rule! - Women's Health
• Viva el Veronica Mars! - Entertainment Weekly

Weekly Scoreboard:

Today the Birdos take on the Nationals at 12:05pm CST. A full schedule can be found here. The game will be shown today on Fox Sports Midwest. The complete broadcasting schedule is located here. Today's pitching match should be a good one as Cardinal Ace and all around good guy, Adam Wainwright is slated to go up against lefty Gio Gonzalez.

10 days until Opening Day, Yo!

More people have been sending me links lately and I love and appreciate it. Keep up the good work, team! If you find any links you would like to share, please feel free to share them, with me especially. Tweet me @lil_scooter93 or e-mail me lil_scooter93@msn.com.