Brian Bannister on BP Radio

I came across an entertaining, brief interview with Brian Bannister on Baseball Prospectus radio. Bannister’s one of those players that I think most fans really enjoy – he’s accessible, he’s definitely put a lot of effort into parlaying a fairly weak skill set (relative to most pitchers) into an average major league career, and for those in the statistical branch of the baseball fan community, he’s among the louder voices espousing the use of statistical analysis in judging (and adjusting) performance.

Click here to check it out. It makes a great listen as he covers such topics as:

• Image as a player
• Stat usage and maximizing value
• Photography, guitars and hobbies off the diamond
• The personalities in the Royals clubhouse
• Rusty Kuntz and messing around in the bullpen
• Differing approaches and skills regarding starting vs. relieving
• Using Fangraphs and Pitch F/X

There’s more, but it’s overall a fun, light interview and gives a glimpse of one of Kansas City’s favorite players.

I always find it fun to learn a bit more of some of the unsung players.  I always enjoyed following players like Tim Belcher, Greg Gagne, Brent Mayne, Jim Eisenreich and Tom Goodwin  just as much as Kevin Appier, Jeff Montgomery, Bo Jackson and so on and so on.  That’s part of the fun of being a fan – over the course of a six month season, of multiple seasons, you connect with your team.  Guys like Bannister are great ambassadors of the game and while maybe he’s only average at best as a pitcher, I’m still glad to have him around because he enriches the experience of following my team.