Best Pitchers of the 21st-Century: Part 3

The On Deck Circle

This is the third and final installment of this series.  If you are just discovering this series, and you want to go back and take a look at prior posts, here’s the link to Part 1 (which also discusses the criteria I used compile this list) and Part 2, which lists players #11-#20.

Now, on to pitchers #21-#25:

English: Mike Mussina (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

21)  Mike Mussina – Yes, here’s another one whom we might not think of as, strictly-speaking, a 21st-century pitcher.  Yet about 43% of Mussina’s career WAR value occurred from 2001 until his retirement after the 2008 season.

Mussina’s career fits neatly into almost two halves.  He spent the first ten years of his career, through the year 2000, with the Baltimore Orioles.  They were generally his best years.

During that span, he finished in the top ten in Cy Young voting five times.  In…

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Best Pitchers of the 21st-Century: Part 2

The On Deck Circle

This is the second of three installments in this series.  If you want to go back and read the criteria I used to compile this list, or to find out who the top ten pitchers of the 21st-century have been, here’s link to the first post.

In this second installment, you will find that some of the pitchers listed were household names in the late-20th-century as well.  This does not contradict my prior sentiment that the purpose of this list is to highlight those players who are of more recent vintage.

Although I don’t necessarily want this list to reflect a Hall of Fame ballot of retired players, the fact of the matter is that some of the players we might normally consider of pre-9/11 vintage actually spent around half or more of their careers toiling in our current century, performing at a high level.

Each pitcher included on this…

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Best Pitchers of the 21st-Century: Part 1

The On Deck Circle

Who are the best pitchers of the 21st-century?

This is the first installment of a three-part series that will examine the top pitchers the 21st-century has had to offer.

Let me be clear, I am not attempting to discuss which of the current young arms of this generation will ultimately prevail as the greatest pitcher of (at least the first quarter) of this century.  Therefore, you won’t find David Price, Steven Strasburg, or Matt Harvey on this list.  To make this list, a pitcher has to A) Have accumulated at least 30.0 career WAR, B) Not have accumulated the vast majority of his career WAR value in the 20th-century, C) Cannot have a career ERA over 4.00 and D) Cannot have been primarily a relief pitcher.

These criteria mean that, for example, Roger Clemens, who won two of his seven Cy Young awards in this century, and even though he…

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These 15 Maps Don’t Explain the Middle East :

You Get An F (The Elevator Sign)

Mwuhahahahahahaha. Terrible.

— Jackson Williams.

Minas Tirith Made From 420,000 Matchsticks

TwistedSifter

Minas Tirith (aka the White City and City of the Kings) is the capital of Gondor, a fictional city and castle from J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth.

Completed in 2010 after three years of work, artist Pat Acton recreated the famed city using 420,000 meticulously placed matchsticks and a lot of glue. He used an additional 24,000 small wooden blocks to construct Mount Mindoulluin, which supports the colossal matchstick structure.

To create his artworks, Acton purchases matchsticks (without the sulfur tip) directly from match manufacturers. All of his models (that have not been purchased) can be viewed at the Matchstick Marvels Museum in Gladbrook, Iowa. The museum is open 7 days a week from 1-5 pm (April 1 – Nov. 30). Admission for adults is $5; kids aged 5-12 $3; and free for anyone younger.

You can see more of Acton’s amazing matchstick models on his website and Facebook page.

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Emergency Exit Procedure 101

— Jackson Williams.

Crane Operator for Shanghai’s Tallest Building Takes Amazing Photos of City Below

TwistedSifter

Photographer Wei Genshen

 

Amateur photographer Wei Genshen has taken advantage of his day job as a crane operator to take breathtaking photos of the city from high above the sprawling metropolis. Currently under construction is the Shanghai Tower in Lujiazui, Pudong, Shanghai. Upon its projected completion in 2014, the building will stand approximately 632 metres (2,073 ft) high and will have 121 stories, making it the second-tallest building in the world and the tallest structure of any kind in China. [Source]

Led by Chinese architect Jun Xia, Shanghai Tower was designed by American architectural firm Gensler, and takes the form of nine cylindrical buildings stacked atop each other. Shanghai, with a total population near 24 million, is the largest city in China and home to more than 20,000 buildings over 11 storeys.

According to the Daily Mail, the amazing series below recently earned Wei second prize…

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WARBIRD.

KA-KAW.

— Jackson Williams.

LSD + Feces = Very Bad Time

What’s…what’s going on, England? You doing alright? All good?

— Jackson Williams.

Rare Photos of the New York City Punk Scene in the ’70s and ’80s

Thank You, “King of the Hill”

— Jackson Williams.