Archive for May, 2008

May-jor League Thoughts. Posted by Reid Levin in Cleveland Indians, Front Page News May 30th, 2008

The Indians are um, not good right now. So, instead of saying things like, “they need to make a trade (or four),” I have no confidence in any player unless they have an ‘SP’ in front of their name (besides Paul Byrd),” and “five of the worst fifteen (qualifying) batting averages in the American League belong to Indians hitters,” I decided to provide some miscellaneous thoughts from around the league from May. Also, a seriously-too-long rant in the middle that really gets me worked up:

There’s no way this and that aren’t related. In case you are too lazy to click, the first is a story about the government trying to subpoena 104 MLB players that tested positive for steroids in 2003. The second is a fantasy analysis on the state of relief pitchers in baseball, namely closers and their inability to, um, not suck. Hey, here’s a question: why are a lot fewer relievers throwing 95-100 mph? Everybody seems to be in the 88-95 mph range these days. Plus, they aren’t as effective as they once were, like 5 years ago. Also, on a completely different topic, over 100 players tested positive for steroids in 2003. That’s over 3 players per team. And that doesn’t even account for HGH. Must be a coincidence. Read more

(The Sound of Fingers Drumming on a Table) Posted by Ken Jones in Texas Rangers May 30th, 2008

I’m bored. I hate off days. And if you add an off day to an afternoon game the day before, that means two nights without a game to watch. Sure, there are other teams on the television, but it’s not the same. It’s not our team.

For six months, baseball on the radio or on TV provides the steady background noise of our lives. The announcers are our friends, or at very worst, our annoying won’t-shut-up relatives (Big “hi” to Josh Lewin!) who finally kind of grow on us. You reflexively reach for the radio, trying to remember what time the game starts, or bounce back and forth trying to find which channel is televising the game before you remember: Off day.

The players need a break. We understand that. No one would ask them to play 162 games in a row without a day off. Heck, Seattle could use a couple of weeks off, sleep in late, try and find somewhere to get a nice cup of coffee and put their season back together. The Padres deserve some comp time for all of the 18- and 22-inning games they’ve been playing lately. And to be honest, the “Lost” finale was going to eat up two hours tonight anyway. But come Monday, June 9th, I’m going to miss the Rangers, even if they deserve the day off….

A Few Other Notes: Read more

Sox Head West, Offense Goes South Posted by Brian Filipiak in Boston Red Sox May 30th, 2008

Superman has his Kryptonite. Spider-Man has his forever-conflicting sense of responsibility. And the oh-so-close-to-being-immortal Achilles had that pesky heel thing.

But the fatal weakness for the Red Sox thus far this season has been quite simple—with no intergalactic travel required. Because just outside the friendly nooks and crannies of Fenway Park, the mighty Boston lineup tends to morph from a run-producing powerhouse into the motley crew that made up the anemic offense of the painfully awful ‘62 Mets.

OK, a bit of an exaggeration, for sure. After all, the Sox, despite a recent run-scoring outage, still maintain the second best road OPS in the American League. But with Boston dropping 10 of their last 12 away from the Fens—and averaging only 3.5 runs in the process—the team needs to take the nearest exit ramp off this road to perdition.

After the first six contests of a ten game trip—a West Coast swing through Oakland and Seattle before heading back east to square off against Baltimore this weekend—the Sox find themselves with only a single etch in the win column. Read more

K is for Kershaw Posted by AJ Jackson in Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, New York Yankees May 30th, 2008

The Dodgers believe they have the next big time pitcher. The next Dwight Gooden, the next Roger Clemens, the next Sandy Koufax. His name is Clayton Kershaw. Even though he has pitched just six innings on the year, Dodgers fans are over the moon for this young pitching project. Since Kershaw is just 20 years old, the Dodgers plan on limiting him to about 170 innings on the season. However, that should be more than enough time to get a feel for what the young phenom can do.

Standing in at six feet three inches, the lanky left hander is the kind of pitcher front office personal dream about. Hailing from Texas, Dodgers faithful are hoping that he proves to be more Nolan Ryan than Roger Clemens. Joe Torre had wanted to bring Kershaw along slowly, but at the end of the day, the Dodgers pitching has not performed as well as hoped. Kershaw is one of the few southpaw’s that the Dodgers have.

This Friday will be a big test for Kershaw as he will be pitching under the bright lights of New York City when the Dodgers play the Mets. Wearing number 54, Kershaw is trying to bring life to a Dodger team that has been underachieving for most of the season. Joe Torre plans on using Kershaw the way he used Joba Chamberlain last season with the Yankees, which is to say he will be used sparingly.

Whatever Kershaw can bring to the table will be an improvement as not one member of the Dodgers rotation has a winning record. Kershaw will be the Dodgers fifth starter for the foreseeable future. Right now, Kershaw is in line to see a number of starts in the coming weeks, then management will evaluate where there young phenom is at. One thing is for sure, the Dodgers hope that Kershaw can be their best left hander since Sandy Koufax. But, they would be happy if Kershaw turns out as good as Orel Hershiser. Either way, if Kershaw is lucky he will end up like Brad Penny and get to date both Alyssa Milano and Eliza Dushku.

Aces Low Posted by Justin Elson in Philadelphia Phillies May 30th, 2008

As we leave the unofficial beginning of summer in our temporal rearview mirror and welcome the onset of June, it’s time to rethink what may be a slow start is really the beginnings of an off year. While this phenomenon affects every Major League roster, the Phillies preeminent offender is a keystone in a tenuous starting rotation. Brett Myers’ struggles on the mound this year have raised serious alarms in the one area the Phillies can hardly weather imbalance.

Back in March as the Phillies headed north to begin their 2008 season, Brett Myers was named their ace, their anchor in a rotation that contained at least three serious question marks. While some might argue that Cole Hamels is the obvious ace of the staff –and rightfully so- Myers was awarded the Opening Day start because he has been the best Phillies pitcher since 2003, handled a Smotlzian conversion into the team’s closer last year, and has always demonstrated a tenacity on the mound that few hurlers possess. 2008 has produced a different Brett Myers. Read more

Memorial Day Musings from D.C. Posted by Brian Conlin in Washington Nationals May 30th, 2008

This past Memorial Day, three cars cut me off in a 20 minute span on the D.C. Beltway. I spewed F, D, B, C, S, and A bombs with no reserve.

After walking through the turnstiles of Nationals Park and taking a tour of the stadium, I noted only one touch of personality, the patriotic bunting hung from the upper decks.

I managed to weave through crowds without anything from Ben’s Chili Bowl or any of the other eateries being spilled on me as I found my seat along the third baseline. Waiting for the game to begin, I watched as a middle-aged man pushed his way through some Milwaukee Brewers fans, the Nationals opponent that day, and announced his displeasure about sitting next to these foreigners before pledging his allegiance to the Yankees.

Even though the game had started, I could see only what now seemed like a zoo. Grown men attacked foul balls without regard to the children sitting next to them. People downed beer with reckless abandon. It was 40,000 people exposing their id.

With the game moving slowly and mediocre ball being played, I wondered if I should head home. When the Brewers put up six runs in the sixth inning to put the game in doubt, I decided to stay longer.

Just before the eighth inning, the video board showed a picture of four wheelchair-bound veterans in attendance. Immediately, the largest cheer of the day erupted from all corners of the stadium. A good portion of the fans stood and applauded these men and women for their individual work and for being symbols of their active and inactive peers.

The standing ovation is a symbolic salute for these wounded warriors and their co-workers who have paid a dearer price because they will never again be able to rise to their feet.

They did not choose to protect the inconsiderate individual but to preserve the ideals and freedoms of this nation.

I sat through the rest of the game and enjoyed the competition of the athletes. But the game’s outcome, the actions of the players, and the behavior of the fans lost their significance – in the harsh light of what these veterans gave up so that we could enjoy freedoms such as watching a baseball day in the warm sun.

Winning at the Ted is Nice, but Braves Have to Start Winning on the Road as Well Posted by JStiltner in Atlanta Braves, Uncategorized May 30th, 2008

With two months of the 2008 season almost in the books, two important factors have become abundantly clear: the Braves play extremely well at Turner Field and generally stink when they play on the road. They find themselves sitting on a 28-24 record and 2 ½ games out of first place in the NL East. They just finished an 8-3 home stand, taking 2 out of 3 from the Oakland Athletics, a four-game sweep of the division rival New York Mets and a four-game split with the NL West leading Arizona Diamondbacks.

During that stretch, the Braves were able to beat Brandon Webb, Johan Santana and the resurgent Randy Johnson. Not an easy task by any team. Webb – the best pitcher in the National League and arguably all of baseball – was dealt just his second loss of the year. Santana – the Mets’ high priced acquisition this past off-season – hasn’t been able to shut down the Braves yet. And Johnson, who once threw a no-hitter against the Braves in his prime, pitched brilliantly, but one mistake proved to be one too many.

The Braves are 22-7 at the Ted this season, which is good for the best home record in the NL and second best in the major leagues, only to the Boston Red Sox (21-5). However, they are 6-17 on the road, which is the worst in all of baseball. If the Braves hope to win the NL East this season and make any noise in the playoffs, they have to find a way to win a lot more games on the road. They started a six-game road trip yesterday against the Milwaukee Brewers and lost the first game of that three-game series 3-2. The Brewers were able to score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning off a sacrifice fly. It was a crushing loss for the Braves, who led 2-1 in the eighth inning, behind the usually stellar Tim Hudson.

The Braves have lost 13 of 14 one-run games and are a pathetic 0-10 in one-run games on the road this season. Third baseman Chipper Jones (.365) is the only Brave hitting over .300 away from Turner Field. So, what’s the problem? “I’m lobbying for us to take our white [home uniform] jerseys on the road and hang them up in the lockers even if we don’t wear them,” right fielder Jeff Francoeur joked to the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. “In all seriousness, we’ve got to get playing better on the road. We don’t want to keep building momentum at home and then go 2-4 on the road.”

Well said, but easier said than done if the Braves wish to turn their road woes into some quality road wins. Here’s a look at some of the numbers: the Braves are hitting .306 at home and .251 on the road. At home, they have scored a collective 156 runs, while only plating 85 runs on the road. They have 151 RBI’s at the Ted and 79 RBI’s on the road. Every Braves hitter – regardless of position – is hitting lower on the road than at home. The disparity between these statistics is alarming. Having good mojo and consistency at home is one of the many things that every team – professional or collegiate – strives for.

Teams are expected to protect their home turf, not allow opponents to come into their territory and outplay them. One of the advantages to this philosophy is that other teams don’t think that they can go into another city and come out with a sweep. No team strives to be a pushover. The Braves have shown that they can handle opponents and excellent pitching at Turner Field. That being said, during the course of a long season, the Braves have got to start taking the same mentality they use at home on the road with them. If they manage to make the playoffs, they have to show other teams that they can be a force to reckon with on the road. Sometimes, they have just been unlucky – like last night. However, no matter what the issues are away from Atlanta, the Braves will look a lot scarier if they don’t end every road trip with a sour taste in their mouths.

**CORRECTION** - There was an incorrect statement I made in the article titled “Chipper Jones is Healthy & Blistering Hot.” At the end of the sixth paragraph, I wrote that once Jones reaches 400 homers, he would be the all-time league leader in that category for a switch-hitter. That was a huge mistake. Mickey Mantle had 536 homers and Eddie Murray had 504 homers. I was thinking of active switch-hitters when I wrote that sentence. My apologies to the Braves Nation and I’ll try to not let it happen again.

Trading Up & Tough Love: The Prospects of a Pitching Mega Deal & Running out of Patience Posted by Jason Powers in Chicago Cubs, Front Page News May 30th, 2008

Car or the Woman? I’d take the car.

As the 31-21 Cubs seem well constituted for a long-awaited NL pennant, one has to realize that the post-season failings of the past often reflect what is necessary to overcome it in the present. Trading up is an option even Candace Bushnell can understand in the world of baseball. 24 years ago, the Cubs obtained #1 starter Rick Sutcliffe, catcher Ron Hassey and reliever George Frazier from Cleveland for Mel Hall, Daryl Banks and Joe Carter. It was a good deal as Sutcliffe went 16-1, won the NL Cy Young, and brought the Cubs to within a deciding game of an NL Pennant. (LF Joe Carter would eventually become the game 6 walk-off hero in 1993 World Series, while amassing 396 home runs and 1,445 RBIs in a 17-year career.)

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Nats fall to Brewers in Extras on Memorial Day Posted by Henry Brier in Washington Nationals May 30th, 2008

The Memorial Day masses exited Nationals Park while listening to a Jamaican Rastafarian crooning about how ‘every little thing gonna’ be all right’ after the Nationals blew a lead in the top of the seventh inning, closed a deficit in the bottom of the 8^th, then gave up the winning run in the top of the 11^th.

Starting pitcher Jason Bergmann departed after throwing 5.2 innings of shutout, four-hit ball, enough to make him eligible for the win when leaving the mound with the Nats leading 2-0 overe the Milwaukee Brewers. The next three relievers proceeded to give up a run apiece before first baseman Dmitri Young smacked a deep drive to centerfield in the bottom of the 8^th, pulling into third with what initially was a stand-up triple.

The umpires then convened, discussed whether Young’s shot had cleared the fence, decided that it had, and the 298 pounder casually strolled home with his first homer of the season as the Nats pulled even.

Closer Jon Rauch, the Nats’ fifth pitcher of the afternoon, pitched a 1-2-3 9^th. Saul Rivera came on in the 10^th, struck out the first batter, gave up a single to the next hitter, and induced the next two batters to fly and line out, respectively. Read more

Does playing for the A’s lead to the Hall of Fame? Posted by Jason Farmer in Oakland Athletics May 27th, 2008

What is it about the Athletics franchise and the Hall of Fame? I was thinking about this the other day when Mike Piazza announced his retirement. What I wanted to know was how many players in baseball history played for the A’s franchise and were also enshrined in baseball’s Hall of Fame. What I came across was outstanding.

In the A’s 41 year history in Oakland, 11 players, coaches, or managers have passed through the green and gold before going on to the Hall of Fame. In addition to them, at least five (Mark McGwire, Tony La Russa, Rickey Henderson, Frank Thomas, and Piazza) more have made stops that are not eligible yet or are on the ballot but have yet to be selected.

Some of those players spent long portions of their career in Oakland (Reggie Jackson, Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Catfish Hunter and Dick Willliams) while others were here for anywhere from a season to few months to a couple of games (Joe Morgan, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Don Sutton, Goose Gossage and even Joe Dimaggio). These players are not all there is though. This is just the Oakland side of it. DiMaggio was a coach with the A’s after he retired and Williams was a manager for the A’s.

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