Thursday Liftoff Links

While the Astros were taking on the Los Angeles Dodgers I was saving baby seals, then I put together these cute links.

Playing it Bull Durham Style

Ultimate Astros " On the Bus with the Legends
Hope on the bus with Chris Wallace in Mike Tauser aka Farmstros new post.

Minor League Notes, May 25th, 2011 - Minor League Ball
J.D. Martinez gets some love from John Sickels.

On the Road: Soaring to Sweet and Saucy New Heights in Lancaster " Ben's Biz Blog
Benjamin Hill over at his blog Ben's Biz Baseball dives into everything that the Lancaster JetHawks, High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros, has to offer. Lots of cool pictures and behind the scene stuff.

Ultimate Astros " The Fixler Files- Farewell Edition
Jonathan Fixler is retiring from the game of baseball, and says his good bye in the most recent post from Mike Tauser.

Doing it Bill James Style

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About UZR But Were Afraid to Ask - Beyond the Box Score
Dave Gershman discusses the inner workings of UZR.

Living off the Long Ball: Team Runs and Home Runs, 2011 - Beyond the Box Score
A look at teams whose run scoring has been dependent on home runs so far in 2011. Chicks dig the long ball.

Ultimate Base Running (UBR) | FanGraphs Baseball
A new variable is being included in the statistics Wins Above Replacement FanGraphs utilizes.

Ultimate Base Running Primer | FanGraphs Baseball
The inner workings of the base running statistic UBR.

How Do Ultimate Base Runs and Equivalent Base Running Runs Compare? - Beyond the Box Score
A comparison of FanGraphs new base running statistic Ultimate Base Runs (UBR) and Baseball Prospectus Equivalent Base Running Runs (EQBRR). One thing I noticed was the BP doesn't do a very good job of coming up with a good name for their statistics.

Doing it Astros Style

The Best of 2011's No-Homers Club - Beyond the Box Score
Bourn makes the list then promptly takes his name off the list when he leadoff the bottom half of the first inning with a homerun. Love it.

Ultimate Astros " Talking points: Bud Norris is on the cusp of even bigger, better things
Steve Campbell takes a look at Bud Norris comparing his statistics to this point in the season to the league and others.

MLB's Best (And Worst) Baserunners - Baseball Nation
Our friends at FanGraphs debut a new baserunning metric, Ultimate Base Running. There might not be many big surprises, but we're lucky to have it. Rob Neyer looks at the worst and best base runners. Two Astros show up, I'm pretty sure most of you can guess which two make the list.