August project: High Sock Sunday’s UCB lineup

UCB bloggers pose for a photo at the 2014 Blogger Event at Busch Stadium on June 22, 2014. (Photo by Diane Schultz)

UCB bloggers pose for a photo at the 2014 Blogger Event at Busch Stadium on June 22, 2014. (Photo by Diane Schultz)

For our August UCB Project, we’ve been tasked with fielding a baseball-like roster of our fellow bloggers. The idea is to take baseball qualities and translate them to blogging.

My roster is based on my fellow blogger’s writing as well as their personalities on Twitter. If you’re not picked, don’t worry, that doesn’t mean you’re Pete Kozma and are stuck in my make-believe minor league system. It’s just for fun.

Here’s my lineup:

1. Daniel Shoptaw, SS, C70 At The Bat: Daniel got it all started with the UCB and is the one who got me hooked up with Cards Conclave, so it’s only fair that he gets things started for my lineup in the leadoff spot. Daniel’s regular posts and his ability to do podcasts show he’s versatile. I need versatility in the middle of my infield. Most of all, Daniel is reliable, much like Matt Carpenter.

2. Joe Schwarz, CF, Viva El Birdos: Like Joe’s favorite player Jon Jay, I’ve got him batting second and patrolling center field. Joe’s consistent, deep analysis and dependable nature make him a natural fit for the two-spot. I trust Joe to at least move Daniel over to second and more often than not avoid the double play. But Joe’s got pop, so we’re looking for gappers out of him. He’s also tight with one of the Fox Sports Midwest Girls. Well done, Joe.

3. Dan Buffa, C, Cardinals Nerve Center: Dan is a lot like A.J. Pierzynski, which is why I’ve got him as my backstop. He’s got some edge, for sure, and you might get into it with him from time to time. But you know there’s no one who will back you up more when he’s on your side, and that’s the kind of characteristic I look for in my catcher. You hate if he’s on the other team, but you love him when he’s on your team. And as my No. 3 hitter, Dan provides the power. He writes for two web sites and is constantly working to find something to write about. On top of that, he never loses energy. You’ll get 100 percent effort from Dan every night.

4. A.J. Blankenship, 3B, Gateway Sports Connection: A.J. carries himself like a pro on Twitter. He’s calm and never gets too high or too low, and when he writes, he brings the power. Take his latest post on Jon Jay for example. He made a strong case for moving Jon Jay up in the lineup and gave some pretty good stats to back it up. He can bring the pop deliver some power, so he’s perfect in the cleanup spot.

5. Wes Keene, 1B, Keene on MLB: I see a lot of similarities between Wes and me. If Mike has his “guys,” Wes would be a “Cole guy.” Wes was the first person to buy one of my High Sock Sunday T-shirts, which is indicative of his go-getter mentality and ability to come through in the clutch. Match that with his fondness of MLB The Show and his ability to write 1,000 words on Daniel Descalso, he’s perfect for the middle of my order.

6. Tara Wellman, 2B, Bird Tales: Tara has been doing this a long time and provides some key veteran leadership to my team. She’s one of the most knowledgeable baseball bloggers I follow and she isn’t afraid to break out the statistics to back up her argument. She does a weekly podcast and is also a great singer, so she’s clearly versatile. I’ve got her at second base but she could probably play anywhere.

7. John Nagel, LF, Cardinals Farm: I’ve never met John, but he does what he does better than anyone else, so he’s a must-have in my lineup. No one else covers the Cardinals minor league system like he does. Daily John is providing constant updates on prospects from Triple-A to Rookie Ball. Cardinals fans, bloggers and I would ever argue traditional media, are lucky to have a guy like John who is dedicated to keeping us informed on the minor leagues. We feel like we know who the prospects are when they get to St. Louis.

8. Nick Waeltz, SP, Pitchers Hit Eighth: Nick doesn’t write a whole lot, but you know when he does that it’s going to be something good. He’s perfect for a starting pitcher who goes every fifth day. Nick runs this great website that you’re reading right now, which tells me he knows how to lead a staff  of both writers and pitchers. Plus, with his blog name, how can I not have him pitching at batting eighth? That would be like me playing baseball with my pant legs rolled down.

9. Ben Chambers, RF, The view from here: Ben and I don’t always agree, but he was one of the first bloggers to regularly communicate with me when I started High Sock Sunday. He’s loyal and will give you 100 percent effort. At No. 9, I’m hoping Ben can be used as a second leadoff guy. He writes and tweets a lot, so he’s got speed on the base paths. If he’s anything like his hero Peter Bourjos, he’ll provide great defense too.

I like my squad. If I left anyone out, don’t be offended. It wasn’t on purpose. Making out my lineup was tough, but I still think I could do a better job than Mike Matheny.

(I kid).

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.

 

You can reach Cole Claybourn at highsocksunday@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter at @HighSock_Sunday.

Next Post:

Previous Post:

Please share, follow, or like us :)

Subscribe to The Conclave via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 16.3K other subscribers

Archives