Daily Briefing: Remembering J.R. Richard

The FanGraphs Newsletter, August 6, 2021 [READ IN BROWSER]( By Jeffrey Bellone - August 6, 2021 REST IN PEACE: Houston Astros pitching legend J.R. Richard, whose career was cut short tin 1980 due to a stroke, died Thursday at the age of 71. Standing at 6-foot-8, Richard was one of the most intimidating pitchers of his time, leading the league in strikeouts in 1978 and '79. []( MVP CONSIDERATION: Phillies star Bryce Harper hit his 250th career home run on Thursday, while helping his team sweep the Nationals to pull within a half game of the first place Mets, whom they are scheduled to face this weekend. Harper is batting .356/.469/.654 over his last 30 games and is making a case for MVP consideration. []( FIRST IMPRESSION: Recently-acquired slugger Joey Gallo saved his first home run as a Yankee for a dramatic moment. Down a run in the seventh inning against the Mariners, Gallo hit three-run homer to give the Bronx Bombers a 5-3 lead they would not relinquish. []( ALL BETS ARE ON: The Commission on Chicago Landmarks unanimously approved the Cubs' plans to build a two-story sportsbook next to Wrigley Field. []( 📈 STAT OF THE DAY: The San Francisco Giants came back from four runs down in the ninth inning to win a game for the first time since April 18, 1993. The Giants rallied from a 4-0 deficit in the ninth, before beating the Diamondbacks on a go-ahead double by Kris Bryant in the 10th. The win extended the Giants' first place lead over the Dodgers to four games. []( 🗣 QUOTABLE: “If he doesn’t have that stroke, he’s in the Hall of Fame," former outfielder Gary Matthews said of J.R. Richard. "He had Hall of Fame stuff and he would have had Hall of Fame stats. J.R. Richard doesn’t have to take a back seat to any pitcher that’s ever pitched in the major leagues.” []( This newsletter is made possible due to the generous support of our members. If you are reading this email or use FanGraphs in your daily baseball routine, please consider supporting us. [BECOME A FANGRAPHS MEMBER]( ALEK MANOAH: Manoah’s best starts have been those during which he’s been able to throw his changeup more than 10% of the time, while maintaining a CSW% above 20% on the pitch – a balance he was able to strike in his debut, and again on two occasions in July 👉 [Alek Manoah Brings About Changeups, by Tess Taruskin]( WAIT TILL NEXT YEAR: I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the Cubs enter 2022 as an 81-win team. The division helps them in this regard; the Brewers are a good team but not likely as good as their 2021 record, and there’s little indication that anybody else has an interest in going on a spending spree 👉 [When Will the Cubs Roar Again? by Dan Szymborski]( LATE INNING LEADS: This season has seen a ton of blown leads in late innings. In the past two seasons, save conversion rates have plummeted, diving from a stable range of 66-70% from 2002-18, down to as low as 61.7% so far this season. 👉 [Late Inning Leads Are Becoming Less Secure, by Chet Gutwein]( 📚 RECENTLY PUBLISHED [Logan Webb Is Sinking His Way to Success]( by Luke Hooper [Daily Prospect Notes: 8/6/21]( by Eric Longenhagen [Mining the News (8/5/21)]( by Jeff Zimmerman [Roto Riteup: August 6, 2021]( by Justin Mason [Bullpen Report: August 6, 2021]( by Jon Becker 🎧 [Effectively Wild Episode 1730: The Mike Trout 30th Birthday Draft]( 🎧 [FanGraphs Audio: Dan Szymborski and Jason Martinez Judge the Moves]( 🎧 [Effectively Wild Episode 1729: That's Just Like, Your Opinion, Man]( 🎧 [Beat the Shift Podcast - Engagement Episode w/ Patrick Davitt]( ⚾️ ROSTER REPORT For the latest roster information, please visit our [RosterResource]( pages. [Baseball's Great Debate: Who's Worse, Pitchers Who Hit, or Hitters Who Pitch?]( by Ben Lindbergh, The Ringer [Trouble in Queens? Can Edwin Diaz Help the Mets Right the Ship?]( Max Greenfield, Pitcher List [What are the Dodgers going to do with David Price?]( by Brian Menendez, Beyond the Box Score [Nick Castellanos’ deep drive: The Reds outfielder continues to find the rhyme for his reason in first All-Star season]( by Andy McCullough, The Athletic ($) [@fangraphs]( [FanGraphs]( [FanGraphs]( [RSS]( [FORWARD]( [SUBSCRIBE]( Copyright © 2021 FanGraphs Inc, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to the FanGraphs Newsletter. Our mailing address is: FanGraphs Inc 1200 N Hartford St. Apt 312Arlington, Va 22201 [Add us to your address book]( Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](