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The decline of smallball and its impact on the game

Carlos Beltran's successful sacrifice bunt last week re-ignited a debate about the value of bunting.

Carlos Beltran's successful sacrifice bunt last week re-ignited a debate about the value of bunting.

The Royals are last in the AL in home runs and Alex Gordon's modest total of 13 leads the team.

The Royals are last in the AL in home runs and Alex Gordon's modest total of 13 leads the team.

The Mets' Matt Harvey has unquestionably had a great season, but the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw is the obvious choice for NL Cy Young. He leads the majors in innings (182 1/3) and ERA (1.88), proving quantity and quality. Even after adjusting for his league and pitcher-friendly home ballpark, Kershaw's ERA+ is 190, which means he is 90 percent better than the average pitcher. If he finishes the season that way, it would only be the third such season in 10 years, joining Roger Clemens in 2005 and Zack Greinke in 2009.

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