Baseball Moguls

Opening Day! Sans Yankees

2008-03-31T14:15:00.000-07:00

It is opening day, and that is very exciting. I watched the Nationals game on ESPN last night and that new stadium looks beautiful. I really like Manny Acta and they have some good players. They could be exciting, just not quite good enough.

Anyway, I could stay really objective and say that this blog is just about baseball in general, and while that may definitely be true, I would by lying if I said this blog was slanted towards the Yankees and the AL East. So, much to my chagrin, I have to wait one more day to actually watch/listen to/keep track of a Yankees game. That is kind of depressing.

However, I don't have much to say right now, though I am watching Giants-Dodgers, and it's weird seeing Joe Torre in a Dodger uniform, but I'll get over it. I also said a couple of posts ago that I would make some note of the Canseco-A-Rod steroid crap, but I decided against that, because there's nothing really to say. Canseco has NOTHING. He has a tremendous axe to grind so I'm pretty much taking everything that comes out of his mouth with a grain of salt.

I did want to bring one thing up: one of the sites we have linked on the right side of the blog is the Replacement Level Yankees Blog. I know, I know, it is just about the Yankees, but what I am linking here is the RLYB's projection system for the upcoming system. (You should also go there for some very forward-thinking analysis of the Yankees and at many times, baseball in general. They are really sweet over there.) They ran the season a bunch of times through six different systems and it is interesting to see that despite the fact that everyone seems to think the Yankees are the fourth best team in baseball...these projections say the Yankees are the best. I think that is interesting and I think everyone should take note of that. These projections are used still because they are successful. If they weren't right, people wouldn't pay attention to them. Well, people are still paying attention, which would lead me to deduce that they ARE right a fair amount of the time.

http://www.replacementlevel.com/index.php/RLYW/comments/the_2008_diamond_mind_projection_blowout_pt_2

So, you should check that out if you want to see how complex equations and programs predict the baseball season. I'll hopefully be back tomorrow with a rehash of the Yankees first game, which I'm very excited about.

Baseball is back, and it's a good feeling.

Preview Part II: American League

2008-03-27T10:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I attempted to predict the National League, or, as I like to call it, Quadruple A. Part of me really wanted to do the American League first, specifically the AL East, but I tried to avoid that, or at least hold off for one day. Of course, that day is today and I've been doing some thinking, and without further adieu, here is my 2008 American League preview:

AL West
The west, the smallest division in baseball with only four teams is actually going to be very interesting. The two top teams, the Angels and Mariners improved, specifically the M's and their pitching, while the A's regressed and the Rangers remained their same terrible self. Recent developments however have changed my thoughts on how the west is going to shape up.

Mariners: As of 24 hours ago, I was set to put the Angels (whom I hate) in the top spot, but certain things have happened regarding certain players on the Angels roster that have changed this. The Mariners added Oriole lefty Erik Bedard to their rotation and there is no way that is going to hurt. Bedard is a very good young pitcher, who has done very well the last couple seasons in the AL East, arguably the toughest division in baseball. This gives King Felix Hernandez a chance to relax a little as he does not have the hopes of Seattle resting on his young right arm. The offense should score enough runs to allow a very good bullpen capped by JJ Putz to close out a fair amount of victories.
Angels: Yesterday it was discovered that Kelvim Escobar, he of the 134 ERA+ from last season was probably going to have to have season-ending and possibly career ending shoulder surgery. That is really too bad, cause Escobar and Lackey up at the top of that rotation certainly would have propelled the Angels to another division title, but without Escobar, I'm not convinced. Weaver regressed over more innings last year and they just don't have enough offense outside of Vlad. Sure they added Torii Hunter, but they already had Gary Matthews, a light-hitting good defensive outfield. Kendrick is good, but I'm not sold. No Escobar is not good.
Rangers: The Rangers just are not going to be good. They have yet to stock-pile, or even pick up any good pitchers, and when they do, those pitchers get mad cause they pitch in Arlington which is a home run haven. The offense may score runs, but Hank Blalock has been on the downfall since is All-Star Game winning homer in 2003 and last year he only played in 58 games. Not enough in Texas.
Athletics: Supposedly this is a rebuilding year and I agree. Rich Harden, if he stays healthy is really good, but it is not nearly enough.

AL Central
The AL Central I think is going to be much like the AL East has been the last couple of years: an all-out, season-long battle between two teams who are way better than any of the others in their division. Those two teams are going to be the Indians and Tigers. It will be fun.

Tigers: I was extremely hesitant to pick the Tigers here because although their offense is going to be VERY good, their pitching, despite what people say, I think, is not that good. They have Justin Verlander, who is a bonafide ace, but beyond that, what do they have? Dontrelle? No thank you. Willis pitched in the NL last year, in a pitcher's ballpark and sported a crisp 5.17 ERA, a WHIP of 1.597 and an ERA+ of 83. How do you think he's going to do this year? Probably not that well. Robertson and Bonderman are solid, and I think they'll have barely enough pitching to edge out the Indians and that's just simply because of their ridiculous offense. Their bullpen too, is a little bit of a question mark, I know I don't trust Todd Jones. Let me just say I could easily flip these two teams, but I picked the Tigers over the Indians for the reasons I'm about to discuss.
Indians: I think the Indians are very talented. Last year they had probably the best 1-2 combo in the game with Sabathia and Carmona. However, I think that will change this year. Sabathia is in a contract year, and I think he will perform very well. Carmona on the other hand, I believe is headed for a hard fall. He threw about 74 innings in 2006, and last year he threw well over 200. That means he is in for a regression, and an injury. That's what history has taught us. If he pitches like he did last year, that gives the Indians the advantage because their lineup is pretty darn good too, and they have a pretty dynamite bullpen. But I think just having Sabathia and big question marks in Carmona and Westbrook doesn't quite cut it.
Twins: The loss of Santana will be devastating for the Twins. Yes, they have Liriano coming back but it's no guarantee he pitches like he did two seasons ago. It would be fun to watch if he did, but who knows. The offense will be pretty solid, but there really isn't enough all around for the Twins to compete with the Indians and Tigers.
White Sox: I hate Ozzie Guillen. I didn't think this team was good last year when they were bad, and I don't think they're good this year. I bet Konerko will have a better year, but they don't have really much of anything elsewhere. They had the worst OBP last year, and that's one of the big reasons they were terrible. They'll finish fourth, and I could not be happier. Put it on the board, yes.
Royals: Alex Gordon is good...or at least he will be.

AL East
Ah, and now we get to the premier division in baseball. Sure some might argue it's the AL Central, or something else, but it's not. In this division you have the two most popular teams battling it out over the course of the season, and nothing could be more exciting. I have though long and hard about my prediction for the AL East and I know many will think I'm just being a homer when I make my pick, but hopefully I'll be able to provide some accurate reasoning to convince some people that I'm not a blind Yankees fan.

Yankees: Yes, yes, I'm aware that many think the Red Sox are the much better team, but I think that is absolutely false. First, lineup wise, the Yankees have the second best lineup in baseball behind the Tigers, and that is the truth. They are going to score runs, and it will be fun to watch. When you have Robinson Cano hitting eighth...that is a sight to behold. The real question concerns their pitching. However, they have Chien-Ming Wang at the top of the rotation and he has been the most consistent starter in baseball over the last two seasons, and that's good. Then there is Pettitte, who I still honestly believes has some gas left in the tank and Mussina, who did show in September of last year that he has something let. Will he be able to bring it out? That's the question. The Yankees are relying on some young guys too, Joba, Phil Franchise and Kennedy, but they all have shown they can pitch at the Major League level. How about over the whole season? That is the big question that I think another AL East team also has. The bullpen has the potential to be scary or pretty decent. The Yankees season depends on a lot of if's, but the reason I put them first is because of their lineup and their potential. Of course, I will be honest and say it is a relative coin flip and they could easily be supplanted by the Red Sox. But we'll see.
Red Sox: The Red Sox are more than likely going to be good. Their lineup is very solid and they don't really give up at bats. I am curious as to see if Jacoby Ellsbury can produce over a full season. I don't think he can, but he'll be good, I won't deny that. It will also be interesting to see if Lackadaisical JD Drew recovers, which I don't think he will, because he NEVER HAS. Anyway, on to the pitching. Beckett is good, that is for sure. After him though, I think the Red Sox have the same questions as the Yankees. Curt Schilling? Will he pitch this year? Can you really rely on Tim Wakefield? I know he usually wins games, but eventually he won't, when will that happen? And all I hear from a lot of Red Sox fans and bloggers is that the Yankees are relying on young pitchers, but so are the Red Sox. Lester's career stats are really not that good (4.68 ERA and a WHIP of almost 1.6) and who is to say that Buchholz is going to pitch well but, for example Phil Hughes won't? It doesn't make sense. And why is it a guarantee that Dice-K is going to dominate? I also do not think they're bullpen is as dominant people think it is. They have Papelbon who is really good, yes, but who else? Timlin is old. Lopez can't get lefty's out. There are questions. They have some of the same questions the Yankees have and that's why I think it is a coin flip. And I honestly think the Yankees have the slight edge, though I do feel I'm in the minority on that one.
Blue Jays: A lot of people, including ESPN's Steve Phillips say that Toronto is a "darkhorse". Well, not only do I plan on disagreeing with everything Phillips' says anyway, I think he's wrong here. We have been hearing about Toronto's potential for years, and yet, they come up with nothing. Yes, they have Halladay, and Burnett, but he has only pitched over 170 innings twice in his career, why would he do it this year? They traded away one of their best offensive players, Troy Glaus for a guy, Scott Rolen who hasn't produced since 2004. Vernon Wells signed a new contract and Alex Rios is talented, but I don't think there's enough there. They will be lucky to stay ahead of the Rays.
Rays: The Rays are talented. I'll give them that much. They have a lot of good young players. But they are also quite undisciplined and I think that will hurt them. Don't discount them for sure, with players like Crawford and even Carlos Pena (who is going to regress, but will still be good) and pitchers like Kazmir and Sonnanstine, etc. I just don't think they are there quite yet. Will they ever be? I hope so, it would be fun, but not this year.
Orioles: Nick Markakis is good...that's about it.

There it is. My MLB preview. I know that was a bit lengthy, but I like the AL, what can I say. This year is certainly going to be exciting and I'm just ready for it to get under way.

By the way, I also plan on posting some thoughts regarding Jose Canseco and his garbage about Alex Rodriguez. He is just pathetic, but that is for another time.

Just think, in about in 7 months the World Series will be going on. That's not THAT far away...right?

2008 Baseball and My Humble Predictions

2008-03-26T10:39:00.000-07:00

I would just like to say that I am very, very, very excited for the baseball season to start. What's that you say? It has started? How could I have missed it....? The only way would have been if the games started at 6 in the morning on a weekday. Oh, that's what happened...gotcha.

The truth of the matter is I actually got up quite early to catch the early games of the 2008 MLB Season featuring the Red Sox and A's from Japan. And yeah, it was not the Yankees, but it was professional baseball, and that was a step in the right direction for sure. Of course, the season has not yet completely started, that begins on Sunday night with the Braves and the Nationals clashing at the Nationals new stadium in Washington, DC (which is where I am this semester, and yes, for all of you concerned, I WILL be going, it's going to be sweet.) Nevertheless, with the start of the baseball season less than a week away, I figured, being a huge baseball fan, I should look into the season and try and use what I know, to, you know, predict the results. We are smack in the middle of March Madness, so we're all in the predicting mood of course. By the way, is the end of March one of the greatest times to be a sports fan or what? You have March Madness, obviously, and that's exciting, you have the start of Major League Baseball, the Masters is only a short time away, and if you care about the NBA and the NHL, those seasons are winding down with playoff battles. Plus, if you are a soccer, or futbol fan, you have the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League coming up. That sounds like quite the collection of sporting events.

Anyway, let me get to my predictions. Granted I do not have a complex way of doing this like those at Baseball Reference and their PECOTA, or CAIRO, or ZIPS, or any of the other fancy things. Don't get me wrong, I really do think those things are valuable and really help us look at statistics and find out who is the best player. Plus, they are often right, which is cool. Nevertheless I'm going to make my predictions using my noggin. I'll start with the NL.

NL East
The NL East is going to be very interesting. The teams within it improved (except for the Marlins and Nationals of course, so 3 out of 5 improved...). The Phillies will be looking to win their second straight division title, the Mets will be looking to rebound from that tremendous, historic and downright hysterical collapse last year, and the Braves will be looking to climb back to the top. Here is what I think will happen:

Mets: although I hate the Mets, it is pretty hard to discount them at this point. Adding Johan Santana was really a big deal, and is really going to benefit them, adding a true ace to the top of their rotation. You put Pedro in their, and add Perez and El Duque on the back end of the rotation and you have quite the team. Plus, they have a pretty good lineup with Beltran, Wright and Reyes anchoring it. I see the Mets rebounding to take the division.
Phillies: The Phillies are good, and they will probably win the Wild Card, I can tell you that much, and they will mash, for sure, especially in that ballpark. The thing is I think the Mets added more quality players (see, Santana, Johan) in the offseason and that put them over the top. The Phillies are solid, with some pretty good starters (Cole Hamels for sure) and a very good lineup, as I mentioned. I just think they'll come up a tad short.
Braves: They'll be good, but not good enough. Adding Glavine felt like a nostalgic thing, I don't know how effective he can still be. Sure, they have some pretty good hitters in Franceour, Teixiera, Chipper of course and McCann but it looks as though they won't quite match up to the others as well. They certainly could compete for the Wild Card, but not for the title.
Nationals: Well...they have a new stadium this year...I guess that's pretty cool. They have some young talent, especially with Zimmerman at third. And Manny Acta is one of the more forward-thinking managers in the game, which is really cool. But they just don't have enough talent to compete, but they'll be better than the Marlins.
Marlins: Problem: they no longer employ Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis...Result: badness. I think that pretty much does it. Sure, Willis was not good last year, but Cabrera was...it's going to be a rough year.

NL Central
I'm pretty sure the Cubs are the team to beat in the NL Central. I think the Cardinals will be ok, but the health questions regarding Pujols should be on the mind of LaRussa as he tries to manage the team. And we've been hearing about the young Brew-Crew for a while now, but they have really yet to show us their full ability. They did a little last year...how about this year?

Cubs: I just think the Cubs are set for this year. A pretty good offense and with Lilly and Zambrano at the top of their rotation, I think they're set to lead the way in the NL Central. Their bullpen is pretty good too, with Kerry Wood at the back end. Can he stay healthy? I don't know, but if he can't, Ryan Dempster is waiting in the wings, and that's not bad. Soriano, Derrick Lee and Aramis Ramirez look to anchor a pretty strong lineup.
Brewers: I'm going to go out on a limb and put the Brewers here. They have a lot of good young players like Braun, Prince, obviously, JJ Hardy and Bill Hall. And with Gallardo and Sheets anchoring the rotation, I think they should rack up a fair amount of wins. I just think they're one, or two key players away from really reaching their full potential.
Cardinals: I guess I would have to put the Cards here cause of LaRussa, but if Pujols is really as hurt as they say, this is going to be a lost season, and that is that. If Pujols plays, they'll be mediocre. The addition of Glaus was interesting to say the least, they traded one oft-injured third baseman (Rolen) for another. Will he dominate? Maybe, but it won't be enough.
Astros: They have some good players, Oswalt, Lee and Hunter Pence, but they don't have enough good players.
Reds: Dusty Baker is NOT the answer. Harang might be, so might Arroyo, but they started pretty strongly last year, but folded, I would expect the same thing.
Pirates: Seriously?

NL West
Last year the D'Backs surprised everyone by playing EXTREMELY well and winning the division, but the bigger surprise came from the Rockies who went on a torrid pace down the stretch and were able to capture the Wild Card, and the Pennant only to be congratulated by getting royally dominated by the Red Sox. This division is going to be very interesting cause there are three pretty talented teams, the D'Backs, Dodgers and Padres, one mediocre team with a powerful offense, Rockies, and arguably the worst team in baseball, the Giants.

Dodgers: Well, I think Joe Torre, despite what people think, will make a difference. This team was very talented last year, but still underachieved and found themselves outside, looking in, in regards to the playoff picture. I think they have the talent to win the NL West with some very good young players like Russel Martin and other good young position players. Plus, their pitching staff with Penny is going to be pretty solid and their bullpen is anchored by Takashi Saito, and he's not a bad guy to have back there.
D'Backs: The addition of Danny Haren to accompany Brandon Webb at the top of the rotation was huge. I really think these two teams are almost interchangeable at the top. The lineup for the D'Backs is quite solid with Byrnes and Upton and some other pretty good hitters, but it's that rotation that really looks good. Those two could win the division for the D'Backs themselves.
Padres: Good pitching with Jake Peavy but a lineup held up on some old legs (Edmonds and Giles) in a HUGE ballpark. I just don't think they have enough. It looks as if one of the greatest closers ever, Trevor Hoffman, will really not get another chance to win that ring.
Rockies: They have an awesome offense. Don't get me wrong. With Holliday, Hawpe, Tulowitzki and company, they are going to score some runs. Unfortunately they play in Coors Field and Jeff Francis is their best pitcher...that's not going to cut it. Last year was fun, but it was last year.
Giants: They are terrible. Even a good year by Zito, Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain will not save this team. They aren't going to score any runs, terrible offense

That's all for right now. I have some work to do, so I'll get to the American League and my playoff projections later. I just think this year is going to be a LOT of fun.

Small Ball? No Thank You

2008-03-04T15:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I think everyone is pretty aware my beloved Yankees have a new manager this year. Mr. Joe Torre has been replaced by former Yankee, and 1996 World Series Game 6 hero Joe Girardi. Girardi had one year as a manager in Florida, two years ago. He did a lot with a VERY young team. The only problem was, he completely clashed with the owner, and he was eventually fired. He eventually won the NL Manager of the Year award, but was subsequently out of a job. He spent last year as an analyst on the glorious YES Network. Then the whole playoff thing went down, and the Yankees replaced the legendary Torre with Girardi.

I was pretty excited about this. I really didn't want Torre to be fired. But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized it was time. A change was needed, and some fire needed to be planted in the Yankees. Sometimes it looked like they were on cruise control, just doing whatever the deuce they wanted to do, and not playing with the late-90s fire. That's where Girardi comes in. He's younger and supposedly, from reports from Yankees Spring Training suggest he is taking a much more hands on approach. Not only has he been doing the coaching, but he's been catching, fitting and even hitting. I don't think Mr. Torre has done that for quite a while. The question however, is how is Girardi going to manage.

Small ball sucks. Let me just get that in there. Stealing bases is risky and a lot of the times unnecessary, unless you have someone like A-Rod who can steal 25 bases while only getting caught once or twice. Bunting on the other hand, is dumb ALL the time, unless the pitcher is up with runners on first and second with no one out. Small ball never works. If it does, it only does in the NL. Definitely NOT in the AL, and certainly not in the AL East. Not with a lineup that scored 900+ runs last year basically in tact. I am really hoping that Girardi doesn't do the small ball thing, cause I think it would be detrimental to the Yankees chances. What the Yankees need are baserunners, walks, doubles and home runs, that's how you score runs, not bunting and stealing.

The problem however is that a lot of people don't understand that small ball is terrible. They are convinced the Yankees went on their late-90s dynasty BECAUSE of small ball. That is not the case. Even though they did not hit that many home runs, those Yankees had a high OBP and they did NOT do a lot of bunting. They just found a way to win that did not include giving up outs. This current team, is a bunch of mashers, high OBP and OPS guys and that needs to be exploited. The only people who would be bunting are Melky, Damon and Jeter, and only if they are trying for a base hit. Today I was reading an article about Girardi on ESPN.com and I saw that someone made a post regarding the article. And this is what they said:

"1000 runs scored for the season shouldn't be difficult at all if the Yankees are going to be stealing bases, bunting players into scoring position, hitting and running more, and doing all the small things that they haven't done in a long time. I'm really liking what I'm hearing regarding Joe Girardi's camp."

If this person actually thinks the Yankees will score runs by bunting and stealing and hitting and running, he is COMPLETELY naive. Let's hope that the rest of the Yankee universe, including their new manager realize that is NOT the way to do it. Especially when the first 8 hitters in your lineup have the last names Damon, Jeter, Abreu, Rodriguez, Posada, Matsui, Cano and a rejuvenated (or so I hear, I'll believe it when I see it) Giambi. Who is going to bunt? Who I ask you, who?

Out of Hibernation

2008-02-18T10:38:00.000-08:00

Well my baseball fan friends, it's me, Michael, back from a long winter and back to the blog. I know many of you have waited with baited breath...or something like that, but your wait is over. Pitchers and catchers have reported (to Spring Training, NOT Capitol Hill, though they've done that too) and we are almost ready to begin.

I will be completely honest though, I did not spend a lot of time thinking about baseball since the last time I posted, December 13, simply because I was spending that time watching my beloved New York Football Giants make their march through history. I probably will discuss the amazingness that was Super Bowl XLII at some point, just because I have to mention it everyday, BECAUSE of its amazingness, but now is not the time. It's almost baseball time, and I want to talk baseball.

Spring Training is afoot, and as I like to say, we have escaped the "Dark Ages", or the time between the Fall Classic and February. I'm very excited for the season, I think it is going to be a great one. The Yankees, Red Sox and...Rays???? are equipped to compete in the AL East. Ok, maybe just the first two, but the Rays will be better this year...I think. In the AL Central, there is a definite possibility that a year-long, battle royale will occur between the Indians and Tigers, who overhauled their offense into a pitcher-crushing machine.... The AL West? I don't know, the Angels are always ok, but with a front two of King Felix and now Eric Bedard, Seattle looks formidable. In Quadruple A, or the National League, the NL East is primed for a battle between the Mets with Johan and the Phillies, the defending champs. Figure the Braves to be in the mix as well. Who knows about the NL Central. Isn't this the Cubs year? Wait, that was last year...or 2004? No, it was 2003? Steve Bartman? What? Ok, I have no idea. Does Tony LaRussa even care anymore? Will he have a bunch of 12-pitcher innings, mixing and matching pitch for pitch? "Ok, it's 0-2...let's bring in s0-and-so, he's got a good curve. Ok, 1-2, we want a fastball, bring in the hurler..." The NL West looks like it's going to be D'Bags, sorry, D'Backs and the Rockies with the Padres in there and Joe Torre leading an underachieving Dodger team into the mix as well. Could be very exciting.

Basically, it looks as though the 2008 Baseball Season is going to be fantastic. Two stadiums will be hosting their last baseball games: s*** Shea and Yankee Stadium, the glorious cathedral it is. The Nationals are opening up a new stadium, and I'm in Washington this semester, and I'm definitely going to experience that. Plus, at Fenway they...oh wait, they didn't really do anything. All in all, I'm excited. I'm still glowing about my G-Men, but I'll try and focus on baseball. Back later for some real analysis eh?

My Apologies

2007-12-13T10:42:00.001-08:00

So, I am aware that I have been a bad blogger, I haven't posted in a week short of a month. And it's been at a bad time because there has beena lot going on. But, I figured I would post today since the Mitchell Report is being announced in a little over ten minutes, and i'm extremely worried/nervous about who will be named.

Although I am taking the Mitchell Report with a grain of salt seeing as how Mitchell has, and will have in the future an intimate connection with the Red Sox: CONFLICT OF INTEREST!!! Anyway, it will be interesting to see who gets named, I am hoping none of my favorite players, who aren't just Yankees....

I am now done with school, so I'll more time to post over the next month. Let's see what happens at 2 p.m. eastern time with the Mitchell Report though. It may have a profound effect on the game we love.

Right of Return

2007-11-20T09:38:00.001-08:00

A couple of big stories did in fact break yesterday after I posted. So, i figured, in my important role as a blogger, I should address them.

Mike Lowell it appears WILL be headed back to the Boston Red Sox, manning the hot corner for them for at least 3 more years. I think the Red Sox are winners on this one. They were only interested in giving Lowell a 3-year deal and it was made quite apparent they were not going to budge on that. Lowell, who has the same agent(s) as Jorge Posada (who got a 4-year deal), was supposedly looking for 4 years from somewhere. There were a lot of reports that maybe the Braves, Angels, and Yankees were going after him, but in the end, he'll stay in Boston. I mentioned in my last post, that part of me thought Lowell was going to stay and the other part thought he would leave. There's a lot of talk in Boston that Lowell took a "pay cut" by coming back to the Red Sox and he should be applauded for that. Give me a break people. If, by now, you do NOT realize that baseball is all about money, you need to find a new sport. I would have to guess that when the Levinson's couldn't find a greater deal than 3 years/$37.5 million, they told Mike: "hey, you should probably just stay in Boston. It's the most money, and hey, they'll think you made a magnanimous gesture by staying. Win-win." If you actually think it's about loyalty, why don't you talk to Roger Clemens, or Johnny Damon, how about JD Drew? It isn't about loyalty folks. It isn't even about winning sometimes (A-Rod with Texas). It's about money. The fact is, Mike Lowell probably didn't take a pay cut. The deal the Red Sox gave was probably all that was out there, unless he wanted to play for free somewhere. Let's be honest with ourselves here. Mike Lowell, despite the fact that everyone things he is the "nicest", "most professional" baseball player on the planet (or that's what I gather from stories coming from Red Sox Nation), he is the same as everyone else. Curt Schilling mentioned on his blog how it's great "Mikey" took a cut to come back for three years. I would guess Curt only came back because he realized no one else was going to pay him the money he wanted, and he can just spin it to make himself look good. Loyalty is lost in this world of high salaries. If you want to think about loyalty, then isn't A-Rod just as loyal, in a sick, twisted way. Like Lowell he had the chance to sign elsewhere, thought he was going to get more money, and then came back. Just, because Lowell is viewed as a better "professional" than A-Rod (which is just crap, I think stats matter. That's what baseball players are judged on. If it were based personality, than Ty Cobb and Ted Williams, just two examples, wouldn't be viewed in such high regard because they were both s*** heads), his gesture is "loyal" while A-Rod is greedy. They both realized they weren't going to get the money they wanted, so they returned to their solid base. Makes sense to me. Just one is colosally better than the other...

Mariano Rivera accepted the Yankees 3 year/$45 million deal. Good for him. Right move. I spoke at length about him yesterday, so there's really no need to talk more. I'm happy.

Alex Rodriguez won his third MVP award yesterday, to no one's surprise. Except this guy who wrote an article I read about how Ortiz was the "real" MVP. Give me a break. Anyway, A-Rod SHOULD have been unanimous but a couple of Detroit writers found it necessary to vote Magglio Ordonez in the first place spot, instead of A-Rod. That's ridiculous. Did they watch baseball this year? Yes, although making the postseason is not integral for a player to being an MVP, it helps. I'm sure these guys were just looking at batting average, of which Ordonez had a higher one. But that matters so little in the statistical world. Let's be serious. Look at all the key offensive categories, and it's pretty obvious A-Rod was the better player, the MVP. Ordonez had a higher batting average (whatever) and a higher OBP, but not by much. A-Rod had a higher slugging, a higher OPS+ (which is park adjusted, a great stat), more total bases, more stolen bases, almost double the home runs, more RsBI, and more runs. Ordonez had more hits, but that really doesn't matter. He had a lot of doubles, which is impressive, but not impressive enough to beat Alex out for MVP. Plus, for A-Rod, with RISP, he hit .333, with 98 RsBI and a 1.138 OPS. He hit .357 in the new "close and late situations". With the bases loaded? How about hitting to the tune of .500 (7-14) with a 1.286 OPS. And in September, when the Yankees needed him, Alex went ahead and hit .362. Those numbers are mind-boggling and those guys in Detroit should be ashamed of themselves.

Ok, there was a trade yesterday, which was pretty big, i would say. The Chicago White Sox traded one of their starters, Jon Garland (an 18-game winner in 2005 and 2006) to the Angels for SS Orlando Cabrera. I really have NO idea why this trade was made. The Angels struggled for offense this season outside of Guerrero and the OC (which is what Cabrera is called) played pretty well. He hit over .300, had 86 RsBI, stole 20 bases, hit over 30 doubles and is a very good defensive shortstop. Garland struggled this year record-wise, which is really not a good measure of a pitcher. He had a 4.23 ERA, which was actually about a quarter of a run better than he had in 2006 when he won 18 games (just showing you how stupid wins are). He had an ERA+ of 112, which is pretty good, and a WHIP of 1.36, also not bad. He pitches in a pitchers park, the New Comisky (also known as US Cellular) and had pretty good numbers. I dont' understand why this trade was made. Really, i don't. The White Sox need pitching, Garland is a middle of the road starter who can help your team. The Angels need offense, and they traded one of the more solid offensive players on their team...I just don't get it. Maybe the Angels were in a self-destructive mode seeing as how they didn't get A-Rod, but still...who's going to play short? They aren't going to bring David Eckstein back are they? I hope not cause he's TERRIBLE!!! Well, actually, I hate the Angels, so I hope they do, cause then they'd be worse...That's objective right....Oh, it's not? Whatever. Anyway, weird decision by these two teams.

Luis Castillo is staying with the Mets. He was resigned to a 4 year/$25 million deal. Pretty good little second baseman who just needs to get on base after Jose Reyes for David Wright. Good pick up at the deadline last year by the Mets. He should help them this year.

Anyway, I guess that's all for know. Weird development: although Jorge Posada reportedly signed a deal last Monday, contingent on his passing a physical, which was scheduled for last Wednesday, there has been nothing official. Pete Abraham at the LoHud Yankees Blog suggests that maybe the Yankees are waiting for a joint press conference with Posada, Rivera and Rodriguez. Who knows. Oh, and all of this should help push Andy Pettitte towards coming back. He wants to play for a winner, and the Yankees are certainly giving him a right of return. I can tell you that much.

That's what I meant

2007-11-19T20:15:00.000-08:00

This is what I should have said about Jeter's tax situation. I guess I didn't have the guts.

Overpaid Turkeys....

2007-11-19T07:00:00.000-08:00

Alright, well, now I'm on vacation so I have some more time to post. My thoughts...

The Yankees have apparently cooled on Mike Lowell and although in my last post, I expressed some interest in the Yankees going after him, I have since flip-flopped on that issue. I know, I know, I had better just stick to my guns, but nevertheless, after doing some thinking, I realized it really wouldn't make that much sense because of a couple reasons: stats, age and money. First of all stats: as I mentioned in my last post, Lowell's splits were pretty extreme. He hit well over .350 and home and under .280 on the road. I think it's pretty obvious that he is made for Fenway Park. He's a pull hitter and I watched over the course of the season, as he roped line drives into that wall, or lifted shallow fly balls over it. I think it's pretty obvious Fenway suits him well. Because of that, I shy away from him coming and playing for the Yankees. It's 399 to left center in Yankee Stadium, a lot of those very impressive home runs at Fenway in to the Monster Seats, would be outs at the Stadium. Sure, he can go and play for anyone else, which part of me feels is going to happen, but not for the Yanks. Second reason: age. He's old, relatively. I know, he's only about 2 and half years older than Mr. Rodriguez, but let's be serious here folks, they're not on the same plane. Oh yes, Mike Lowell had a tremendous season and he dominated in the postseason, unlike another AL East third baseman (STILL NOT HIS FAULT, give it up people, it's not his fault. All of you who don't want A-Rod on your team because he isn't a "winner" are on drugs. Look at the stats, the only series where you can really point to him not helping out at all is the 2006 ALDS, but even then, there are multiple culprits, not just A-Rod) but Lowell is past the prime of his career, and he had this tremendous season, in a walk year. Javy Lopez anyone? Yes, Lowell is the "consummate" professional, a very nice guy, but to be honest, I could care less. I don't want the Yankees giving a 33-, soon to be 34-year-old third baseman, who just had a career year, 4 years at about 14 million per year, or something like that. It's not worth it. As I read somewhere else: that would be an "Old Yankee Signing", a stop gap. The more I think about it Wilson Betemit, who is still young, is much cheaper, and in the long run, probably a much better option at first. He doesn't need to be a dominant force in that lineup. And that's if he gets regular playing time. There's Andy Phillips and the Giambino (finally in the last year of his deal), so there are some options at first, and signing Mike Lowell would just an "eff you" to the Red Sox, and I don't feel as though that's necessary. That's a Red Sox thing to do, honestly. Oh, and money...the Yankees don't need to spend more money. They need to spend it on the right things like: signing Johan Santana to an extension if they get him....money is not a problem for the Yankees, but that doesn't mean they have to go ahead and just spend it...

Apparently, according to ESPN.com, talks with A-Rod are "in the bottom of the fifth inning". Wow, tremendous use of a baseball analogy. But, I assume the talks are going to get done. Hank Steinbrenner said the issue was really about just getting it down on paper. I would be very surprised and very depressed if this deal fell through.

Mariano Rivera has thrown his little conniption and is apparently close to accepting the Yankees original 3 year/$45 million deal. That's a good thing, cause if he didn't accept that deal, I would punch him in the face and say good riddance. I love Mo, don't get me wrong. And just like Gelbs, he's one of my most favorite Yankees and I want him to finish his career in pinstripes. But that doesn't mean I would give him absolutely anything he wanted. He's going to be 38 pretty soon, and he's already getting a 3 year deal. A fourth year would be borderline ridiculous. I think he realizes that no one else is going to give him that kind of money and more years. The Yankees are overpaying, yes, but I think it's to pay him in kind for all he has done for the Yanks. I know he talked about following Torre out to the Dodgers, but I think he's forgetting that the Dodgers already have an All-Star closer in Takashi Saito. They wouldn't spend more than 3 years, and $45 million dollars on Rivera. Plus, i'm guessing Mo wants to close, and I don't think they would move Saito, it would just be awkward for Rivera. I think he's making the right choice.

Tommy Glavine is going back to the Braves, reuniting with at least one of the big three in Atlanta, Mr. John Smoltz. This is probably a good deal. It's worth about $8 million for one year and this is probably the only place Glavine can pitch. Glavine is a definite HOFer after winning his 300th game this year, but there's no way he could pitch in the AL. He's what I like to call a crafty lefty. He doesn't throw hard, of course, he never did. He relies on location and that changeup to get hitters out. And it worked pretty well last year. Even with the Mets' late season meltdown, Glavine finished with a 13-8 record, a 4.45 ERA (which was under 4 for most of the year) and he threw 200 innings. Plus, he doesn't need to be a front of the rotation guy with the Braves, he needs to be a back of the rotation guy, not unlike Mike Mussina for the Yankees and Curt Schilling for the Red Sox. They don't need to make too many starts and they aren't being relied on for 15-20 wins, and if they were, everyone would be very dissapointed. I can't think of Glavine in any uniform but the Braves. I think this is a good deal.

Oh, the MVP's are announced today and tomorrow, AL first. If you actually think anyone else should be the MVP in the American League, besides A-Rod, please, either state your case, or shut up. If you don't think he should be, just because you don't like him, then you have a problem. A-Rod deserves it, and not just because he put up ridiculous numbers, but bccause he carried the Yankees. THAT'S an MVP. Though, if you have some other ideas, please, let me know. In the NL, I am torn between Jimmy Rollins, SS for the Phillies, and Matt Holliday, LF for the Rockies. They both had TREMENDOUS seasons, Holliday with the power and RsBI and Rollins with everything else. But if I were to make a decision, I would have to give it to Jimmy Rollins. He was the spark plug for the Phillies over the last month and he played great defense. The 20-20-20-20 thing with doubles, triples, homers and stolen bases thing was incredible. I just think he really was an MVP. Both guys had help in their lineups in Howard for Rollins and Helton and Atkins, and Hawpe and Tulowitzski (I think that's wrong) for Holliday. But Rollins deserves it, i wouldn't be surprised if the vote were VERY close.

Anyway, that's all. The family comes up this week for Thanksgiving fun. It absolutely is my most favorite holliday. It's going to be a great week. If anything comes up, or if I get bored, then I'll be back.

Mo wants fourths

2007-11-16T11:40:00.000-08:00

Mariano Rivera, my second-favorite baseball player of all time, supposedly is holding out on the Yankees until they can provide a guaranteed fourth season on a new contract. Their current offer stands at 3 years, $45M - an offer which puts him roughly $5M per year ahead of anyone else in the highest-paid-reliever-in-baseball race. In fact, if they Yankees left the contract as-is and simply tacked on a fourth season, he would still average more money per season than any other reliever in the game.

I don't see any reason why the two sides can't work something out. My guess is the Yankees will lower the salary per annum but wind up paying Mo more money overall, so I'm guessing they'll wind up agreeing on something like $50M over four years, or maybe a tiny bit less. I'm not sure how much money Rivera thinks he's worth, but he has to realize that the Yanks' original offer was extremely generous, and that a fourth year will require a slight annual reduction. However, a team like the Dodgers might be willing to offer Rivera something in the range of $48M over four years, and if Mo really wants to stick with Joe, that type of an offer might just get it done.

In short, I think the Yankees close the deal, but they priced everybody else out of the market with their first offer. Adding a fourth year for less money per season might bring a few other contenders into the field. I know, I know, Mo said he only wants to play in New York or LA, but money talks, and at some point Cashman might decide he doesn't want to get stuck paying an average 42-year-old guy more than 13 million dollars to pitch 60 innings. If he comes to that conclusion, I'll understand.

Oops.

2007-11-16T11:21:00.000-08:00

Seems the beloved Cap'n Jetes has been behaving badly, not paying New York income taxes between 2001 and 2003 while supposedly living in Manhattan.

Now, as a borderline libertarian, I tend to feel that taxes are stupid and inefficient, and I can completely understand why Jeter wanted to claim to be a Florida resident rather than a New York one. Since Floridians don't pay income tax, I would guess that the captain was looking at about a 50% increase in after-tax dough by calling his home in Florida his permanent abode. Also, I would bet that the line between "summer home" and "permanent residence" is pretty thin for a guy who spends winters and springs near Tampa but makes a living in the Bronx.

But really, Jetes, if you're living in New York for a few years ... pay your fuckin' taxes. Everybody else does, and they generally make way less money than you do.

Sweet Calamity, a Crazy Week

2007-11-16T07:07:00.001-08:00

To my loyal readers: my apologies. Lately I have not been a good blogger. I can't even remember the last time I posted, though if I pressed the back button I would probably find out. Nevertheless, I have had some other things going on: mainly school and ridiculously hard essays. Unfortunately all of this has happened at a time when a huge amount of baseball related activity has gone on. I think I should address it chronologically.

Ok, well, the free agent period began on Monday and one player that has been discussed on this blog as being an integral cog in the Yankee future was catcher Jorge Posada. Out of the Yankees two big free agents: Posada and Mariano Rivera, it was assumed that Rivera would take the deal the Yankees offered before becoming a free agent, and Posada, though he claimed he wanted to return to New York would test the market. Well...the opposite of that happened. Right before midnight, as in, right before Posada could talk to other teams, he accepted the Yankees 4 year/$52.4 million deal. Now, Posada is 36. That means the Yankees will be paying him upwards of $13 million when he is 40. Do I have a problem with that? A little, but in the big scheme of things, the way the offseason was going for the Yankees, to lose Posada, arguably the second most valuable player on the team in '07 besides that A-Rod guy would be crippling. That would mean they would either have Jose Molina as their catcher, or some other person, and while that would be cute, I don't want cute. I want powerful and imposing, and that's exactly what Jorge Posada is. Yes, he is getting older, but Posada played so well this year, it was totally worth it to overpay him. Plus, the Yankees can afford to overpay him. In looking to the future, Posada, who came up through the system as a third baseman probably has a couple more years at catcher in his future, followed by a final two years either at first base or DH. In looking ahead for the next two years: Jason Giambi's contract is up after this year (finally) and in two years, Hideki Matsui's contract and Johnny Damon's contract will both be up. That will free up some space at DH and first base for Posada to finish up his career. I like it. I liked the signing. Sure, the money was a lot, but like I already said, the Yankees can afford it, and they could not afford losing Posada to free agency, and probably to the Mets. That would've been not only disastrous to the team, but disastrous in the realm of PR.

Ok, Mariano Rivera. The Yankees offered the soon-to-be 38-year-old closer a 3 year/$45 million deal. I have NO idea why he hasn't signed it yet. He is currently at home in the DR and has yet to tell the Yankees what he is going. Rivera is arguably the most important player in the Yankees dynasty. He is the best closer EVER (screw you Trevor Hoffman) and has been so important to this team, that again, losing him would be crippling. He had an off year this year, but last year he didn't, and he still has the capabilities to be a dominating closer. Right now, Billy Wagner is the highest paid relief pitcher. He earns $10.75 million per year. The Yankee deal that was submitted to Rivera would pay him $15 MILLION A YEAR! I know Rivera is loyal to Joe Torre, and that's very cute. But he knows he belongs with the Yankees. I think the money matters to him. Yes, again, the Yankees are overpaying but you know what, again, they can afford to. I'm sick of hearing the crap, especially from Red Sox fans about the money thing: the Red Sox are just as "bad" as the Yankees in the money department. They are viewed by everyone else in baseball as the same as the Yankees (sorry to break it to you Red Sock fans). Anyway, the Yankees can afford to overpay for Rivera's services, and I will be really surprised and quite devastated if Rivera declines this offer. Though he shouldn't. It would be ludicrous to do so. I know he has a soft spot for Joe Torre but I think he knows he belongs with the Yankees and in the end, he'll sign.

Mike Lowell: Mike Lowell is probably (besides A-Rod, and oh man, I'll get to that later) the biggest name on the market. I know there's Torii Hunter and Andruw Jones, but really, if you're smart, you know Lowell is better than them. The Red Sox had announced that resigning Lowell was a top priority. I believe them. Lowell was very important to the Red Sox this year. He really was their offensive MVP and carried that time while Ortiz and Manny had down years. Plus, he was great in the postseason, helping carry them to that World Series victory thing. Of course, he is 33 and will be 34 in February, so his next contract could conceivably be his last big one. Apparently the Red Sox are looking at this new way of doing things, when they don't sign guys to long-term deals at that age. The deal Epstein submitted to Lowell was apparently for 3 years and somewhere between $36 and $40 million. But that's not what Lowell wants. Lowell is represented by the same two guys (the Levinson's) that represent Jorge Posada and it's would be no surprise if Lowell asks for about the same thing Posada was asking for. So, the Red Sox didn't meat that price, and Mike became a free agent. This is a big deal, because I really don't think the Red Sox are going to budge from their offer, which is ridiculous to me. I know Lowell had a career year, and at his age, usually skills diminish, but he was so important for their team. Epstein thought it necessary to waste about $14 million per on JD Drew, and about $8 million per for Julio Lugo and they both underacheived. Lowell was a steal and the way he performed should mean he gets more money. That's usually how it works. There is a direct relationship between how good one is at baseball and how much they get paid. As a Yankee fan, right when I found out Lowell was a free agent, I thought that the Yankees should think about going after him. Now, I know that his splits this year were ridiculously slanted towards Fenway (he hit .373 at Fenway and .276 on the road) but he is a solid player. I mentioned that I thought the Yankees should try and go after Miguel Cabrera and I realize that the price would obviously be way too high. Plus, if the Yankees solidified their third base (and solidified meant replacing Wilson Bettermint gum) they could use some of those prospects to maybe go after Johan Santana, who may be on the market and would decidedly shift the balance of power in the AL East. I mean, imagine if the Yankees "took" Lowell from the Sox and then got Santana. Whoa. Another idea would be for Lowell to man first base for the Yankees. Why do I mention that...no reason. But that would I think be a perfect fit. I have a feeling that Lowell wants to play for a contender and the Yankees are definitely a contender, especially if they get Lowell. Plus, I don't feel as though Lowell would feel slighted by being asked to play first, that wouldn't be a big deal for him. He's a savvy veteran. Plus, he would be an upgrade over anyone else the Yankees could put out there. Of coures, the Yankees are not the only other team going after Lowell, apparently the Angels, Braves, and Cardinals are all interested. Interesting choice for the Braves, who have Chipper Jones, and the Cardinals who have oft-injured Scott Rolen. The Angels could use Lowell and would probably love to steal him from the East. I would be pretty surprised if Lowell went West to Anaheim. Of course, the way this offseason has started...nothing surprises me.

And you know why? Because it looks as though barring complete disaster, Alex Rodriguez, yes, THE Alex Rodriguez, the one who I have so affectionately called Douche Bag Prime on this website is coming back to my beloved Yankees. Unbelievable turn of events. He opted out. I hated him. The Yankees hated him. He was looking for a quintillion dollars on the open market and I was 100% sure he would end up in Anaheim or with the Dodgers, or something like that. But how about that folks, it looks as though A-Rod and the Yankees have agreed in principle on a 10 year/$275 million deal. Yes, he would remain the highest paid player, but he would take a cut from what was he was originally looking for. Now, I know many out there are calling the Yankees hypocrites for going back on their word, but to be honest, I don't think they did. I mean, yes, Cashman reiterated multiple times that if A-Rod opted out, which he did, his time in Pinstripes would be done. But what has supposedly happened was that A-Rod was bothered by the way he was being lambasted by everyone in sports almost as being an attention-seeking whore who was just out for the money. I mean, I don't fault him for being out for money, everyone is, and you are naive to think otherwise, if in fact you do. What did bother me was the way in which he opted out: announcing it during the World Series and not responding to any of the calls from his then "former" Yankees teammates. He was just a colossal douche who, I thought, was making a huge mistake. I said several times on this website that I thought A-Rod's best bet for absolute stardom, a World Series and lots of money was with the Yankees. They are really the only team who could've paid him what he really wanted, they have a legit World Series Contending team, and it is the #1 stage for sports arguably in the World (sorry London, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and Milan, it's true). Yet, apparently he thought otherwise. Well, after spending like a little less than a month on the market, I guess A-Rod found out that although he was wanted elsewhere (I mean, I know there are A-Rod haters out there, but you are stupid to not want him on your team. That cancer crap is stupid, as well as the fact that he's a loser, i will defend to my grave that it was not A-Rod's fault the Yankees have not won since he's been there. If you don't want A-Rod on your team, you are naive my good friend, naive. And I say that with all due respect, which, if you have seen Talladega Nights means I can say anything I want, and it's ok), he wasn't going to get the money. Plus, like I said, A-Rod, a very image conscious guy, was hurt that everyone was lampooning him about the way he had acted. So, according to multiple sources including A-Rod's own website, he went back and contacted the Yankees through a third party, apparently without the advice of his agent, super agent a-hole Scott Boras, and made a pitch to them about coming back and according to most everyone, it looks like he will. I am ecstatic. Yes, he is still a douche, but he's back to being that lovable douche manning the hot corner for the Yankees, unless this falls through. This is perfect for everyone. The Yankees keep a very good team, and A-Rod gets his money. With the signing of A-Rod, it completely levels the playing field, because it brings back that explosive, devastating offense of last season. The Red Sox have the pitching, and the Yankees have the offense (and maybe the pitching if they get Santana). I am happy because this is what the Yankees need. There was no way they were going to upgrade from A-Rod at third, it was just going to be disappointing and they were going ot have to give up a lot for sure. Now, they had to give up a lot, but of something they could give up: money. It's perfect. Now, this eliminates the possibility of the Red Sox making a splash and seizing A-Rod, completely turning them into an unbeatable juggernaut. Imagine if the Yankees add Mike Lowell and go after Johan Santana? That would be mind-boggling. I think the Red Sox will also be in the Santana race, and if they land him, wow, I would flip out, cause they would be unstoppable, even without Mike Lowell. A-Rod going back to the Yankees is good for both parties, it works out. The Yankees can now focus on some relief help, and getting Andy Pettitte back, and I know Andy wants to play for a contender, and with A-Rod coming back, that's exactly what the Yankees have.

I could not go on without at least mentioning Barry Bonds' indictment for perjury and obstruction of justice charges. I'll be honest, it's a little surprising to me that he was actually indicted after the four-year investigation. What I do know, is that his playing career is probably over. What team is going to sign an old, oft-injured, hot topic, surly superstar, who will be suffering from the stress of dealing with a federal indictment? I really don't think anybody will. I mean, and Bonds can still hit, he could help some teams out there as a DH. Teams with bad offense, like the A's or someone along those lines. But with this, well, I doubt that will happen. Plus, this pretty much contributes to the further tarnishing of his image. I'm not exactly sure how the indictment process works, but I assume they wouldn't indict him, if they didn't have real, hard evidence that he was lying, and if this comes out that he really was taking steroids, it would be disastrous for Barry Bonds. I don't know if it would be disastrous for baseball like many are thinking. The reason I say that is because there have been these steroid rumors for the last four years, and for every season over the last four years, baseball has been setting attendance after attendance record. Fans are not shying away. This will definitely hurt Bonds, but most didn't like him anyway. It could severly dent his accomplishments, I think it should anyway but the real tragedy is that Barry Bonds was a hall of famer before he allegedly started taking steroids. He was one of the best hitters of all time, but this whole thing is ruining that. It's unfortunate. We will see where this goes. I don't expect the trial for at least a couple months but if he is found guilty, he could serve up to 30 years in prison. I know that won't happen, cause he's Barry Bonds, but some jail time is definitely possible. It's too bad he had to be such a jackass. Oh well.

So that's all. I am done with school for a week starting at 3:30 this afternoon so I'll be able to come back and post some stuff on the events that transpire over the next week. It's already been quite the whirlwind this week with the A-Rod stuff, Lowell, Posada, Bonds, Hunter, Jones, the beginning of Free Agency, etc. The Hot Stove will only keep the heat on as the General Manger's meet in Tennessee or some place like that. We'll see what happens won't we. And y'all can check back in here for brilliant analysis and breaking news of course...or something like that.

What is going to happen?

2007-11-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

I would like to believe that after posting on this blog for about two weeks, I would have some idea of what is going to happen. I mean, in order to write things that actually make sense, I have to actually look stuff up and make sure i'm not just pulling stuff out of my arse. I mean, there's a reason Gelbs and I started this blog, cause we kind of know a little about baseball and decided to let everyone know what we think in an open forum where others can discuss, even though that hasn't quite happened yet...Nevertheless, what I was getting at was the fact that I really have no idea what is going to happen this offseason. There are a lot of questions for a lot of teams out there, and a lot of questions regarding a lot of players. Then there is the Mitchell Report which is due to come out soon, and that will offer up a lot more questions. I know some people are just tossing it aside as being ridiculous, but I would have to say that it's going to have a very big effect on the game, but i'll get to that later.

First of all, there was a trade yesterday: the Phillies picked up former ridconulous closer Brad Lidge from the Astros in a five player deal and let's just say there weren't any other big names. A lot of prospects. Brad Lidge used to be unhittable. Then, in the 2005 postseason he had a chance to close out the Cardinals in a game (I don't remember the specifics) and Albert Pujols handed him a blown save by hitting one of the most monstrous home runs I have every seen in my entire life. It was unbelievable. And Lidge's reaction was priceless. He definitely pooped his pants on the mound and we're all pretty sure he would continue to poop his pants over the next couple seasons. Pre-Pujols, in 2005 for example, he threw about 70 innings, struck out a ridiculous 104, gave up just 58 hits, had an ERA of 2.29 and a WHIP of 1.15. Those are nasty. He also accrued 42 saves. Really, really good numbers. But, he had a breakdown in 2006, Post-Pujols: he threw a few more innings with about 75, he gave up more hits, struck out about the same but walked more. He had an abysmal ERA: 5.28 for a closer and a horrendous WHIP: 1.40. He just fell apart. This year he was banished from the closer's position only to return a little later but his numbers weren't spectacular nor were they terrible. The Phillies were looking to move closer Brett Myers back to the rotation so they needed a closer and I think a change of scenery will be good for Lidge. Unfortunately he's not moving to a pitcher's friendly park. He's going form bandbox (Minute Maid) to band box (Citizen's Bank) so...that's not a real change. But he just needs a new uniform. He still has the stuff, seeing as he still strikes out a tremendous number of hitters, but the other stuff isn't there. That's what he's going to fix. I predict a big bounceback year for Brad Lidge.

In other news, Alex Rodriguez is a douche. Oh, wait, I already mentioned that a couple times. It still applies though. Judging from what reports say, there are three players in the A-Rod sweepstakes: Boston, LA Angels and the Mets. The only team A-Rod actually fits in with are the Angels. They have a horrible offense aside from Vlad Guerrero and need a third baseman. Plus, as Peter Abraham pointed out, it would be a perfect place for A-Rod. No pressure, cause no one actually cares about the Angels till they get to the postseason (not unlike a good amount of MLB teams) and he can struggle in the playoffs and no one will care cause the expectations are low and he can rack up ridiculous stats against mediocre American League West pitching. Yay for A-Rod.....The Red Sox are probably out cause Mike Lowell appears to be their third baseman but they certainly could sign A-Rod for shortstop, his natural position and get rid of Lugo, who really does actually suck. By doing this, they would be improving their team immensely, while sacrificing a little bit of that "chemistry", and angering their fans. But, they would be sticking it to the Yankees, and that's important to the Red Sox as sick and twisted as that is. I wouldn't put it past Theo, though by signing A-Rod, they would definitely have the world's largest payroll and could Red Sox fans deal with not being able to complain about how the Yankees have more money? No, I don't think the could. I think the Mets are in this whole thing for show. They won't move David Wright. They can't can they? They tried moving Jose Reyes to second, and he sucked there. They wouldnt' do it again, plus, they already have an expensive, aging Carlos Delgado at first and I don't think anyone would take him, unless the Mets ate his contract. Even the Yankees wouldn't take him...So, it looks like the Angels. Of course, the Yankees are still in play. They still have the most money and the biggest stage for A-Rod to play on. They are set to offer him arbitration and hey, what they hell, maybe he'll buy some time with a one year deal then maybe try and work out a long term deal during next year? Yeah, that's not going to happen....But by offering arbitration that means the Yankees get some draft picks from whoever signs A-Rod so that's worth it. That's it for Douche Bag Update, it will be a while before we hear anything big. At least next week.

The Yankees are looking for a third baseman and some pitching. I really would like them to get Miguel Cabrera. He's a stud. A fat stud, but a stud. Luckily overweightness doesn't matter THAT much in baseball, but I have a feeling with the proper motivation (a chance to win again) he would slim down. If the Marlins ask for Ian Kennedy and some other people I say DO IT!!! But, if it's Joba or Phil Franchise, I say no way in hell. They need some offense at third, and Joe freaking Crede is not going to do it. I trust Brian Cashman though. He knows what he's doing, and not only does he have the most money, but he has one of the top ranked farm systems in baseball. Oh, and he really wants to win to stick it in everyone's face, probably retire and steal the trophy as he left....

George Mitchell: what the hell is going to happen? I have been hearing about all of these things, these salacious reports, naming names, and I already talked about this but: how will this affect the game? The fans took a long time to come back to baseball after the '94 strike but I think this is different. For the casual fan, I think the only thing they would be worried about is if their favorite player would be playing or not. For me, a little bit more than a casual fan (Yankeeism is my religion), this thing matters a little bit more. I know there have been reports about the number of people using steroids, but I would like to believe those are not true. I woudl like to believe there's a little more integrity within the game. I think i would be heartbroken if some of the greatest names of the late '90's, when I began to truly watch, were associated with steroids: Junior Griffey, A-Rod, Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, Frank Thomas, Roberto Alomar, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Tino Martinez (in '97 and the 7th inning of Game 1 of the '98 World Series, grand salami baby), Chipper Jones, Mike Piazza, etc, etc. I mean, those were truly great players (well, not Tino, but he was to me), and I think the game would definitely lose something if the report found these players to be using. I'm worried and nervous about the Mitchell Report. I don't have any control over it, but I think it could have a profound effect on the game, its past and future. Of course, the real question is what do we do. Can we negate some records? Just because Bud Selig authorized this investigation does that make it official baseball-record wise? No, I dont' think it does. I think public perception is going to take a hit and the late '90's and the great performances included within will be tarnished. And that will just be a damn shame.

More news sure to come.

Here's Hoping They Bite the Bullet

2007-11-06T20:55:00.000-08:00

Lots of free agents signing new contracts this offseason will wind up being overpaid. That's the nature of the free agency beast - competition among bidders makes teams pay well above the market price for the number of wins they expect a given player to actually produce on the field. If they're not overpaying right off they bat, they almost certainly will be by the time a contract expires. Obviously, if teams don't want to overpay, they're not very likely to get the productive players they covet. Granted, some teams get lucky and some teams are smart. Every year there are a few players who wind up having really good years for relative peanuts, and there are certain teams (read: general managers) with a real knack for finding value in players deemed useless by the rest of the league. Teams like the Red Sox, Yankees, and Mets can afford to overpay for their players regularly, which is why they put so many fantastic players in their lineups and rotations every year. Teams like Oakland and Minnesota, for whom overpaying for any one player can drastically limit their options at other positions for several years to come, spend money more wisely each season, but they also win fewer games (usually). I'm not describing anything revolutionary here, but the above concepts and trends have me a little worried about the future of my beloved Yankees.

The Yankees appear to have virtually unlimited funds, which makes me nervous about free agent seasons like this one, in which only a few good players are available and almost all of them are likely to make way, WAY too much money next year and for a whole bunch of years to come. This season, the two guys worrying me the most are Torii Hunter and Andruw Jones, both of whom are pretty good players likely approaching the downside of their careers. Hunter is coming off what many people are calling a career year, while Jones clearly just finished the worst season he's ever had. Trouble is, neither of them are likely to have similar seasons in '08, and that's bad in two different ways. First, Hunter: his 2007 included career highs in total bases, RsBI, doubles, and hits. He's also a 32-year-old center fielder with a career OBP of .324, which is awful. His career high in walks is 50, and he routinely strikes out over 100 times per season. Jones, on the other hand, had a truly miserable '07 campaign, OPS+ing a well-below-average 88 with a fairly pathetic .251 EQA. He'll turn 31 next April, and he's almost certain to put up better numbers in '08, but he's never really been the offensive player that his RsBI's and home run totals might indicate. His career OBP of .342 isn't horrid, but it's a long way from great.

Basically, both these guys make a lot of outs, and while Jones is likely to be better this coming season than last, neither appears to have a particularly sparkling future ahead of them. Melky Cabrera, however, is almost eight years younger than Jones, and seems likely to be a starting outfielder somewhere for a good long while. I don't expect him to become a superstar. In fact I sort of doubt he'll ever be as good as either Jones or Hunter in their primes, but he's basically free for the Yanks, and I'd say there's a good chance he puts up equivalent or superior numbers to both of them sometime soon.

SO - my fear is this: Yankees management views both Hunter and Jones as very expensive upgrades, but since costs apparently matter very little to Big Stein, they decide to go for one of them anyway, locking themselves into the worst years of very expensive guys who get on base way less often than Robinson Cano. Thinking they've suffered a slightly inflated payroll for increased outfield production, they wind up trading away a very serviceable, young, cheap Cabrera, opening up a spot for a slight boost in power and defense in the short run and a very bad, outs-creating, payroll-eating, untradeable, unbenchable "star" in the long run.
I really, really hope that doesn't happen.

I've Been Lazy...Baseball Hasn't Been

2007-11-06T13:03:00.000-08:00

Judging from my lack of posts, it's quite obvious that I've been doing other things...unfortunately those are school things. Nevertheless, the offseason baseball roller coaster has started rolling officially with the General Manager's Meetings in Orlando. Now, obviously, I'm not covering them. Thankfully there are plenty of people out there who are. There's been a lot of news that has come down from the top, so let's take a gander.

NYY: I'll usually start with my team from NY, just because, well, I care the most. I reported earlier that Andy Pettitte said he was either going to exercise his $16 million player option for 2008 or retire. He was pretty adament about not playing for any team but the Yankees. Well, yesterday it was reported that Pettitte declined the option. This does not mean he is not going to play for the Yankees, it just means they would have to sign him to another deal. I feel as though it is IMPERATIVE the Yankees do such a thing. Looking at their pitching staff right now, sans Pettitte would include Chien-Ming Wang, Joba Chamberlain (possibly), Phil Hughes, possibly Ian Kennedy and Mike Mussina...Now, there's a lot of promise in that rotation, but to be honest, I know that I, and my friends, and the rest of the Yankee universe, and George Steinbrenner, and Joe Girardi, and Brian Cashman all don't care too much about promise, they want to win right now, and they need one other sure arm in that rotation. That arm would be Andy Pettitte. Supposedly the channels of communication between Pettitte's agent and Brian Cashman are certainly still open. Peter Abraham on the LoHud Blog (you'll see me cite him often, as he is the best place for up-to-date information) said that in an e-mail he received, the agent for Pettitte said Andy just isn't sure yet what he wants to do, but if he wants to play, he's going to come back to the Yankees. Brian Cashman has reiterated that the Yankees "need" Pettitte, and I agree. Supposedly Andy is going to take some time, and Hanky Steinbrenner has offered that time to him, but the Yankees can't afford to wait too long or they'll be in trouble. They better buy Pettitte a Hummer or something, whatever Houston did to get Clemens to sign in '04. Anyway, there's also news regarding the other two high profile Yankee free agents: Posada and Rivera. On the Mariano Rivera front, reports are the Yankees are really close to announcing a 3 year/$40 million deal, maybe by the end of the week. So, that looks good, the Posada front is a little bit more hazy...Posada has said that he wants to remain with the Yankees, but it also looks as though he will enter the market, and make the Yankees bid for him, with the likes of possibly the Mets and Blue Jays. Abraham says the Yankees want him to take the same deal as Rivera, maybe adding on a fourth year and fifteen million per, but, Posada was pretty much underpaid, then he went ahead and had like the best offensive season for a catcher ever so...he's due.

Other new regards some rumors around the Yankees. Some of those include possible trades for Johan Santana of the Twins and Scott Kazmir of Devil Rays. Neither are likely since Cashman has stated that the big three prospects (Joba, Hughes, and Kennedy) are untouchable. Well, kinda untouchable...but it's unlikely that will happen. Same goes for possible trades regarding Marlin's third baseman Miguel "fatass" Cabrera. He's an unbelievable player, but he's straight up out of shape...I would take him, but I wouldn't want the Yankees to give up too much, and any of those three would be too much. And then there is rumors surrounding Douche Prime, or Alex Rodriguez. He just ignored the Yankees, and now, with the Yankees, and judging from what Mets' GM Omar Minaya has to say, the Mets out of the bidding, he could be struggling to find someone to pay him a gazillion dollars, which is what he is looking for. There is some talk that he wants to come back to the Yankees, but I highly doubt that will happen. He stepped all over them with his opt out during the World Series and I highly doubt he will come back. I mean, I wouldn't want to be paying him 40 million dollars at the age of 42, as my cowriter Gelbs said (he should be here soon), he is not Babe Ruth....There is some talk regarding the Yankees and White Sox third baseman Joe Crede, but shoot me in the foot if you think I want him in pinstripes. He has a career OBP of .305? Seriously? He could be the greatest defensive third baseman ever and I would give that trade a second look. No thank you. Especially if it is Johnny Damon for Crede. That's ridiculous. So that's all for the Yankees. On to the other 29, or a couple of them.

LAD: The Dodgers introduced Joe Torre as their new manager yesterday and all I have to say is: good for them. Torre was signed to a pretty big managerial deal and joining him on his coaching staff are former Yankees coaches Don Mattingly (no surprise), Lee Mazzili (no surprise) and Larry Bowa (a little bit of a surprise). The Dodgers were picked by many to finish in first in the NL West by a wide margin, but they underperformed. They have a lot of old players and need to make a few changes. Funny post by one of the bloggers on Fire Joe Morgan linked on the side regarding a piece by ESPN ass face Steve 'I traded Scott Kazmir for Victor Zambrano" Phillips about what the Dodgers have to do to get to the World Series, so check that out. It's a couple posts down. The Dodgers are certainly in the running for A-Rod, they have a lot of money and that would be a good pick up for them. Supposedly, Jeff Kent will not be returning to the Dodgers, or it's unlikely he will, but he's all steroided out anyway. A-Rod following Joe Torre out to LA would not surprise me, though supposedly new Angel GM Tony Reagins was one of few to actually entertain A-Rod talk at the GM meetings. Arte Moreno would love to draw A-Rod out there, we'll see what happens on that front.

BOS: Well, it appears as though big mouth Curt Schilling will return for at least one more year with the Red Sox. Him and Red Sox GM Theo Epstein have spoken and are close to a one year deal worth about $8 million, plus incentives. I think that's probably a good deal. The Red Sox won this year because they had a ridiculously deep pitching staff, and this just maintains the status quo. Especially with the Red Sox keeping Wakefield and Tavarez. Bringing back Schilling puts a veteran in a good spot, just in case one of the rookies/young pitchers, Bucholz or whomever can't cut it. Regarding Mike Lowell, Theo has said it is one of his prime goals to resign Lowell and I think that's going to happen. There's a mutual feeling between the two parties I feel. They don't want A-Rod, I mean, well, they do, if he were free. When asked about A-Rod playing shortstop, Epstein said: "We have a shortstop". I mean, yeah...they do, but he sucks up something fierce...It would be interesting to go after him, I know some smart Red Sox fans who would absolutely appreciate him. I mean, hey, he's the best player in the game, and arguably the best player of this generation. But why would you, as a Red Sox person, want to mess with the team they have now. I mean, I heard they just won some big thing...I don't remember what it is, or maybe I've blocked it out, but they won something...We'll see.

SD: For the Padres, on Monday they agreed to a one year, $10 million deal with Greg Maddux, who has got to be like 55 this year. Nevertheless for a team that pitches in the best pitcher's park in the game, this is a good deal. Maddux is solid and provides stability. Plus, it's in the National League. Good move for the Padres, he only needs to be back of the rotation starter anyway. They have some guy at the top, oh yeah, Jake Peavy and some other solid starters. Plus, Maddux can hit....kind of.

CLE: The Indians resigned Paul Byrd despite the HGH stuff. Whatever, he sucks and I have a feeling he'll have a tough time winning 15 games this year. If you watched Game 4 of the ALDS, it's a miracle he didn't get hammered, but the Yankees were in a funk than's to Carmona, etc...Anyway, so, that matters little with Westbrook, Sabathia and Carmona, they have a great two and a good three, and Paul Byrd. Whatever.

Elsewhere: There's another steroid report out there that former Giants and Diamonbacks third baseman Matt Williams, Seattle Mariners and former LA Angel Jose Guillen and former Marlin pitcher Ismael Valdez all received steroid shipments...I have no idea what's going to happen. Maybe that's why Jose Guillen freaks out all the time. Williams, like Byrd, says he took his HGH on the advice of a doctor for an ankle injury. I have no idea if they're telling the truth. If they aren't, why would they immediately come out lie? I don't know. I have the same question regarding Barry Bonds and the Game of Shadows book. If Bonds really believes everything they wrote was a lie, then...I have an idea; SUE THEM for libel. There's a law in this country that says you can't just print lies about someone, and if you do, then that person can sue. Well, the only thing Bonds has sued for is to halt the sale of the book so the authors can't make money. That's it. Make a stand Barry and telling everyone you wouldn't go to the Hall of Fame if they put an asterisk on your ball is not taking a stand.........The GM's meanwhile today voted to allow instant replay for home run calls. I guess that's a good call, but it works better in football. That sort of human error is part of the game. Baseball games are already long, and the umps usually get the call right when they join together........

Phew. So that's all I have today, surprisingly. There is definitely more to come this week during the meetings and we'll see about Rivera getting signed before next Monday's deadline. Same deal with Mike Lowell. Oh, and the best way to keep track of baseball news is really to update yourself on the links we have posted on this blog. They really are great blogs and sites and offer some great information about the goings on of baseball and sometimes sports in general. So, keep up with that if you want. If you're eyes still work after reading my stuff.....

I'm Back with News

2007-11-03T09:25:00.000-07:00

So after a day's respite from blogging, I have faithfully returned. I know my loyal readers were distraught when they discovered I didn't post on Friday, but never fear, I have come back. A good amount of news on the tail end of Thursday and Friday, some stuff that should be noted is:

LA: So the Dodgers officially named Joe Torre there manager and you know what I have to say: good for both of them. As I have said, I hold no bitterness towards Joe. I wish he had stayed but hey, what the hell. I hope he does well unless they are playing the Yankees, and then, well, I'll have to root for my team obviously. He was signed to a three year/$13 million deal, which is a lot of money (compare that to Girardi's three year/$7.8 million deal) to manage a baseball team. But I guess he certainly deserves it. I wish him and the Dodgers well. It's not just Joe Torre that is headed west from the Yankees however. He is to be joined by Don Mattingly on his coaching staff and possibly some others. Talk is former Yankees third base coach Larry Bowa is thinking about it as well, but that doesn't really make a huge difference I would have to say. Funny thing about Torre headed to LA is his reuniting with Scott Proctor, the former Yankee middle reliever who many say, including me for the most part, Torre wore out. Torre does have a tendency to fall in love with one reliever (Proctor, Quantrill, Stanton, Nelson, etc) and then burns them out, which is what happened to Proctor and Quantrill especially down the stretch and in the playoffs. One of the sites I have linked on the left side of the blog is a funny Yankee one called NoMaas. They weren't too fond of Torre and they have some funny stuff on him going to the Dodgers. You should check it out.

NYM: As I mentioned in my last blog, the Mets are making some noise in their talking with their current third baseman David Wright about moving, not to second as I though I heard, but to first. This of course is in order to make room for that Rodriguez guy. I don't know about that, there isn't much else I can say than what I said in my last writing about the Mets. I think adding Rodriguez would be huge obviously (not just for the Mets but any team) but I think moving Wright would be a mistake, since he is already a really good third baseman. Plus, I don't think offense is the problem with the Mets. Not saying that with the addition of A-Rod they wouldn't dominate the National League, which has crappy offenses abound, but they would still need some pitching. And sorry, a Pedro Martinez who only throws like 85 is decent, but not good enough to actually win. Another thing in regards to the Mets and the Yankees is Jorge Posada. The Yankee catcher says he wants to remain in NY since he added on to his Manhattan home and it would be a waste to move somewhere else. And that of course only leaves two teams, the Yankees and Mets. The Mets current have a hole at catcher with Paul LoDuca becoming a free agent but reports have suggested the Mets are in fact looking to resign him. That would lead me to believe they would not go after Posada, unless it was to make him a first baseman, which then in turn would mean they would not move David Wright, and THAT means, no A-Rod. So decisions, decisions for the Metropolitans.

NYY: Speaking of Jorge Posada, there has been a lot of talk about Posada having a problem with Joe Girardi and some people have said that playing for a coach who played your position is hard. But, to them i say: Joe Torre was Posada's boy, and wait...yeah, that's right, Joe Torre was a CATCHER. Idiots. That is not the problem, in fact, i don't think there is a problem. Posada recently said, as reported by Peter Abraham on the LoHud Blog (check it out) that he likes Girardi and that Girardi was a mentor and a teacher for him when he was on the team. I would say that's a good sign. Posada obviously wants to stay in NY, as I mentioned above and I think signing with the Yankees would be a good move. They are desperate to keep him, so they are probably going to overpay, and when he starts to break down, he can move to two other positions (1B and DH) in the AL, while there is only one other option in the NL. In the end, I think he'll stay in pinstripes. One player who is definitely remaining in pinstripes is Bobby Abreu. The Yankees exercised their $16 million option on the right fielder and this was definitely a great move by the management. It already appears the Yanks will lose their cleanup hitter (A-Rod) they certainly couldn't afford to lose their three hitter as well. Abreu, though afraid of walls in right field, is solid defensivly but a great offensive player. Last year his numbers were a little down, but that's only cause of his horrific start. From July to September he was one of the Yankees most consistent hitters and I think was near the top of the list in many important offensive categories during that period as well. This was a smart move by the Yanks, they need Abreu and his offense, and if they keep Posada and add a solid third baseman with some legit offensive numbers, they may not score 900 runs like they did this year, but 800 for sure.

A-Rod: It's tough to talk about the Yankees without discussing Douche Bag Prime as I like to call him. Supposedly Rodriguez was looking for the $350 million deal with the Yankees. Is he insane? Is it 10 years or 8, cause either way you are paying, at the end of the deal, a 40-42-year-old shortstop/third baseman between $35 and $40 millino to play baseball. That is ridiculous. He wouldn't even listen to the Yankees' offer, which was, by all accounts was huge. Now he thinks he is going to get that money elsewhere? Yeah, I don't think so. And if he is, the team is going to have to clear some major space on their payroll, and that means they aren't going to be any good. Too bad for A-Rod....oh wait, not really. I really did love/adore/worship him while he was on the Yankees, but now, the way that he just threw the Yankees' aside without even listening was ridiculous. Boras said A-Rod was just a regular free agent like Rivera and Posada...yeah, ok. Well, even if that's true, they both listened to the Yankees offers, he didn't even give them a chance. Ridiculous.

BOS: The Red Sox exercised their options on pitchers Tim Wakefield and Julian Tavarez. Wakefield is a solid started who just seems to get the job done even though he is a circus freak of a pitcher (knuckleballer) and Tavarez is just a solid player to come out of the bullpen and be a spot starter. The Red Sox are loaded right now and they just have to deal with the Mike Lowell thing. Though online petitions and Facebook groups are lobbying pretty hard for him to retire a Red Sock. We'll see if they get greedy and go for A-Rod, which they probably shouldn't do, or stick with Lowell, which they should. I'm not just saying that cause I wouldn't want to see the best player in the game make the team I hate the most almost unbeatable (thinking of a lineup with Ortiz, A-Rod and Manny back-to-back-to-back makes me sick), I'm saying it cause I think it would be a bad move. But they would like to stick it to the Yankees. Of course, if they do sign Mr. Rodriguez they will certainly have the games highest payroll and could Red Sox fans deal with that? Probably not, they don't want to "be the Yankees", even though, to every other team in the game, they already are exactly like the Yankees.

So that's the news for right now. There is some Tori Hunter stuff. I don't know about him. Solid defensively, but overrated offensively, he's really not that good. I don't know where he would fit in, contender wise. Maybe the Braves, who decided not to go after free agent Andruw Jones...? Who knows. Sad story in Tiger Land. Flamethrowing reliever Joel Zumaya, who missed a good amount of this year with a finger problem has another, possibly career-ending setback. While helping move stuff from his father's attic in wildfire-ravaged Southern California, a box fell on his pitching shoulder requiring major surgery. The guy can't get a break. Two years ago it was Guitar Hero that gave him semi-carpal tunnel, then this year it was the finger popping, and then in the offseason he's simply trying to help his dad avoid having all of his possessions torched, and a gd box falls on his pitching shoulder. That sucks. I hope he has a good recovery and can come back and pitch, cause he throws gas. Ok, that's all for right now. Big NFL game tomorrow between Colts and Patriots. I dont' know if you've heard...I hate the Patriots, and I semi-like the Colts, so I'm hoping they come out on top. But seriously, the Patriots look like they're playing high school teams right now. Can I logically pick the Colts? No. Patriots will win, but maybe it won't be a blowout...Maybe.

Wait...there are more than 2 Major League Teams?

2007-11-01T06:18:00.000-07:00

Ok, despite what has been written so far on this blog, it really is intended to be about baseball in general and not the sport's two big name teams: the Yankees and Red Sox. But, in my defense, over the last couple weeks, it really has only been about those two teams, with the Yankees supposed anarchy within the organization and the Red Sox winning the World Series. Yeah, the Rockies were there and I gave them their due of course, heck, I was stupid enough to predict a purple and black World Series. Now that the World Series is over, it really is time to focus on MLB as a whole and check out what is going on:

In Cincinnati, the Reds made a wise decision picking up the $13 million option on LF/1B Adam Dunn. Dunn, I know you may have heard of him as a great power hitter, and he is, but he is probably one of the more underrated players in Major League Baseball. Today, some people, non-intelligent ones I call them, no offense to anyone in particular, have become obsessed with stats like batting average and what I think is its equivalent for pitchers: wins. Both of those are overrated stats. Adam Dunn did not hit for a high average this year, or ever. His stats for 2007: he hit .264, not bad, had an On Base Percentage (OBP) of over 100 points higher than his batting average at .386, that's phenomenal, and to top it off, he slugged .554. He walked over 100 times, fifth best in the league, hit 40 homers, third best in the league, and added 106 RsBI, which was good enough for tenth best in the league. Those are solid numbers. Yes, I know, he strikes out a lot, and yes, he is probably made for the AL seeing as how he is not a great fielder. But you don't hear enough about Adam Dunn, he is a great player, and I was hoping the Reds wouldn't pick up that option and maybe the Yanks could pick him up, seeing as how they're going to need to replace a certain players run production...Good move for the Reds. Now they just need to help Dunn and new manager Dusty Baker out with more good players.

In New York, there's another team, whom I don't really like but have made some noise lately with A-Rod talk, and some other news. In the other news first, the Mets have exercised their team-option on 41-year-old outfield Moises Alou at $7.5 million for 2008. Alou is old, and yes, he only played in 87 games, but he did hit in 30 straight games at one point, and that's not bad. Their hope is probably that he will stay healthy and can contribute for more than just over half the season...Their other little pick up was solid back-up infielder Damion Easley. They re-signed him to a one year, $950k contract. He's a good player off the bench and with the Mets already having a solid second baseman in Luis Castillo, who they traded for during the season, Easley is a good player to have around. Now, speaking of the infield, there is talk that the Mets have entertained A-Rod talk. They certainly are one of the few teams that could pay for him, but...where would they put him? They have 24-year-old David Wright at third, and he is a stud, and they have a shortstop, who is believed by many to be the most exciting player in baseball in Jose Reyes...where would A-Rod go? The talk is that Wright would be asked to move to second base, which would make Castillo expendable. Hmmm, replace light-hitting Luis Castillo with Alex Rodriguez? Yeah, that would make sense. I hate the Mets but this would be a good move, thing is, I wouldn't move Wright to second. I would move Jose Reyes, who is susceptible at short to second, keep Wright at third and put A-Rod back to shortstop. Plus, with doing that, there are plenty of teams out there who could take Castillo, extend him as bait and pick up some more pitching, since it looks as though Tommy Glavine is looking elsewhere for next season. It will be exciting.

That's it for this morning. Yes, "4 home runs in one game, and I had a horrifying face-to-face collision with Carlos Beltran", Mike Cameron was suspended by Major League Baseball for 25 games for a second positive stimulant test, but he's a free agent, so that doesn't matter...Oh, and I think I made a mistake earlier. I think I said Grady Little had managed in LA for just one year, yeah, that's not true. 2007 was his second and last year in the Dodger Blue. My apologies. Meanwhile, there is serious Joe Torre discussion in LA, we'll see what happens. Let's see what transpires on this Thursday, shall we?

Withdrawal already? I'm in trouble...

2007-10-31T15:42:00.000-07:00

Suffice it to say, I think I am suffering baseball withdrawal and it has only been three days since the season ended. I think that is bad news seeing as how baseball doesn't return with meaningful games till the beginning of April. Of course there is another way to look at this: the offseason is exciting because it sets up how those meaningful games are going to play out. Not exactly of course, just look at the last couple Yankee teams, which have looked like sure-fire World Series winners and haven't made it out of the first round. Once the offseason is done though, we are usually sure who is NOT going to be good and a pretty idea of who is and I guess in a way that makes it exciting. Plus, although it sucks to think about it, the A-Rod sweepstakes are going to be exciting. Last week at this time I was almost 100% sure that he was going to stay with the Yankees and sign an extension but a lot can happen in 7 days...unfortunately.

Of course there is more to the offseason already in baseball, stuff that has just come to the surface in the last couple days. I made a short post yesterday discussing Joe Girardi's hiring as the new Yankees manager but there have been other developments: Grady Little's apparently personal resignation from the Dodgers, though we all know that this Joe Torre to LA talk really drove him away. Little's resignation sets the stage for Joe to take his Green Tea and early-90's sunglasses to LA where he can really mingle with today's who's who. The Dodgers and Torre apparently are very close to a deal and I am very happy for Joe. Lately a lot of people have asked me what I think about that and I respond the same way: I'm not bitter at Joe Torre, and I'm not bitter at the Yankees. Would I have liked Joe to maybe suck it up and deal with the "incentives" in his contract and stay to manage the Yankees? Yes. Would I have liked the Yankees to have offered him a contract straight up without the special "incentives"? Yes. But just cause those things didn't happen doesn't mean I'm distraught and frightened about the Yankees chances in '08. I think they're going to be just as good as any other team in baseball except maybe the Boston Red Sox who, unfortunately look like the class of baseball at the moment. But all of that can change. Brian Cashman is a shrewd GM and he knows what to do and he wants to win. I think he's going to do some smart things this offseason that really put the Yankees back up in the discussion. Anyway, that was a digression. Joe Torre was what I was talking about. I'm not mad that Joe left. It's a little depressing since he is the only manager I have known for the Yankees but change is not a bad thing in the sports world. New managers and coaches happen all the time, just look at the turnover every year in the NFL and even MLB, even among good teams. Joe wasn't winning in the postseason and as I have already said, it wasn't his fault, but when winning doesn't happen as it should, it's time for a change. Joe Girardi I think is the perfect person to take over in this instance. He knows NY. He knows George. He has experienced winning ('96, '98, and '99) and losing ('97, damn Indians again...). And he did so with some of the players currently on the Yankees. I think both Posada and Rivera will be back after the Yankees offer them boatloads of money and Girardi will be set with his team. I'll be rooting hard for him and I'll be rooting hard for Torre in LA if he ends up there. I mean, he's bringing Mattingly and some others with him, there's nothing wrong with that.

Another interesting offseason question for the Yankees is Andy Pettitte. He was resigned last offseason and came back to his true home, after he felt disrespected by Steinbrenner in the 2003 offseason and departed for the Astros. The contract he signed with the Yankees was a one year deal with a player option for 2008. In recent internets developments that I have been keeping tabs on, Andy supposedly announced that he is either staying with the Yankees or retiring. He isn't going anywhere else. I think that is good news for Yankee fans cause unlike mercenary Clemens, who I do love, but is obviously a mercenary, I think Pettitte is genuine. He was hurt that Steinbrenner cared more about negotiation with Sheffield personally in 2003 and with the attention paid to A-Rod and he felt slighted and left. This time, it is obvious the Yankees want him back. Plus, he pitched very well this year. With some better bullpen performance at the beginning of the season, he could've ended up with 17, 18 maybe even 19 wins. In the end he finished a respectable 15-9 with a 4.05 ERA. There's nothing wrong with that. In addition, he didn't have his trademark elbow issues. All those should be signs that he returns to the Yankees in 2008. I know he was tight with Joe Torre, but he also had experience pitching to and playing with Joe Girardi and I think that is a bonus. He wants to win again, I know that. Look at his virtuoso performance in Game 2 of the ALDS this year. That was vintage Andy Pettitte and I KNOW he still has that left in him.

Looking back on my early blog so far, most of what I have predicted has NOT come true. I would like to believe that I haven't jinxed any of this stuff, I mean, I'm not Sports Illustrated or Madden (I hope you know of those supposed cover jinxes). Therefore, against my better judgment I guess I'll have to keep posting...By the way, have you people seen the new Red Sox World Series ball mystery? If you all remember, which I'm sure you do, after the 2004 World Series, Dougie Mientkiewicz, yeah, I can spell it, caught the final flip from pitcher Keith Foulke and then didn't give the ball back to the Sox for a long time. This time, the final out was a strike out, and catcher Jason Varitek apparently put the ball in his back pocket, then supposedly gave it to closer Jonathan Papalbon. Of course, neither of them knows where the ball is, and it is still missing. If the trophy weren't so big and shiny I'm sure they would lose that too....yikes. Well, if you want to know more, check this story out: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-redsox-lastball&prov=ap&type=lgns. Oh, and one more thing: Curt Schilling, even if you love him, he is a douche bag too. One of the more attention-grabbing/seeking players in MLB. I like his new list of teams that he would play for, he included 12, not including the Yankees. Good, I don't want him there. We don't need another old former power pitcher who relies on the splitter...

Well that's all for this Halloween, be safe out there, and catch some of those classic scary movies on AMC. I have the last couple nights, and they are great. I mean, Michael Myers, Pinhead from Helllraiser, Jason and Freddy Krueger? You can't be those guys, much better than that goofy Ghost Face from Scream, I can tell you that much.

Girardi Officially the New Yankee Skipper

2007-10-30T09:23:00.000-07:00

According to reports at both ESPN and the LoHud Yankee Blog, run by Yankee Beat Writer extraordinaire Peter Abraham, Joe Girardi has accepted the offered job of Yankee manager and has signed on for a three year deal worth $7.5 million. Less than Torre's proposed deal, obviously, but pretty good pay for a guy to sit on the bench and routinely watch 162 (hopefully more) baseball games a season. I think this is a good start for the Yankees. When looking at the big 3 of free agents for the team: Posada, Pettitte and Rivera, they all have connections to Girardi. Girardi was Posada's mentor, and he had good rapports with Pettitte and Rivera, catching for both of them. Although Mattingly was the favorite, I think going with Girardi, who has had recent managerial success with an inferior team in the form of the 2006 Florida Marlins, is a good choice. We'll see who makes up his coaching staff but I think this is a great start for the Yankees.

Oh, and by the way, me being from Vermont, I like to hear about hunting trips gone wrong (as long as nobody dies) and here's a great one from ESPN: http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/hunting/news/story?id=3086588 . Just check that out, it'll give you a good chuckle I think. I was never planning on teaching my dog how to "shoot".

Alright, we'll see what happens. Red Sox Victory parade in Boston today, hopefully the city will be standing afterwards. Congrats again to the Red Sox and their "Nation". Pathetic? Yes. But loyalty is beautiful no matter where you sit, even if it makes you sick....

Red Sox Win, A-Rod's Officially a Douche and Other News

2007-10-29T17:37:00.000-07:00

Well even though I hate to say it, the Red Sox are world champions again. I don't like Jonathan Papelbon, but this picture next to my writing here really is awesome and it really does show the exuberance every player should show upon winning a World Series, especially such a great one. Papelbon was fantastic by the way, I just assumed with 10.2 scoreless innings he would've set a record, but...Rivera in '98 had 13.1, and then there was Goose Gossage who had 14.1 scoreless innings in 1981. But that's not to take away from what he, or any of the Red Sox accomplished. They really did remind me of the Yankee dynasty of the late 90's. And I'm honestly not just trying to say that to spark my memory of those Yankee teams, which would make me feel better. I offer that as a compliment to the current Red Sox. I mean, they deserved this World Series. It is rare the team with the best record ends up winning the World Series, but the Red Sox proved their best record was not a fluke. They are a complete team, with pretty solid players at every position. I mean, Varitek can't hit as well anymore but he is a rock; as is Lowell, except he can hit. Youkilis is turning into a great player, and the future looks bright for those named Pedroia and Ellsbury. Lugo players his role, as does Drew, a little...And of course there is Ortiz and future HOFer Manny. Then there's the pitching, which looks great next year. I mean, I hate to say it, but the Sox are set up for next season. I don't think they'll necessarily do it, repeats are ridiculously hard, as we have seen, since there hasn't been a repeat winner since the 2000 Yankees, but I would have to say that out of all the teams that have won since 2000, they have the best bet. But good God I hope that doesn't happen....

I figured I wouldn't talk about the Game, cause, well, everyone watched it. The Rockies fought hard, Cook pitched very well, but for the second straight night Brian Fuentes couldn't pitch. I mean, Bobby Kielty? Seriously? That's gotta hurt. Holliday played well except for the pickoff of course, Torrealba showed he can catch, then there's old man Helton, Atkins, Hawpe, etc. They definitely looked primed with maybe a little more pitching and really, despite the extension of the lead in Game 3, 3 out of the 4 games were close. I would have to say a big hit in one specific place in each of those games could've changed it around. But the hit never came and the monumental disparity between the AL and the NL was QUITE apparent. In the end the Red Sox, which I hate to say, and type now, it's like a curse word in my mind, deserved this world title. They basically won going away and for that I congratulate their fans. I think they're annoying, but this is there's to enjoy. And I can tell they are doing that cause on my campus (UVM) last night, there were huge riots, again....Well, whatever, if they wanna look like goons, that's ok. Winning is fun.

So that about sums up my feelings on the Red Sox winning, I really would not like to address that, or write about that anymore. So i figured I would talk about the news that in a lot of circles actually upstaged the World Series last night: Alex Rodriguez opting out of his contract with the Yankees. I know I mentioned this in my last blog, but since then I had hoped tha the was just joking or something...but he wasn't. The A-Rod era is done in New York and really, he is such a joke. I mean, I don't care about all of his statements during the season about wanting to stay in New York, there are plenty of phonies out there. What makes it more of a joke is the fact that he didn't even listen to the Yankees' offer and he didn't even call his teammates to let them know he was leaving. The Yankees, reports said, were set to offer him the most lucrative contract ever, 8 years/about $235 million, and he wouldn't even consider it. If he thinks he is going to get more than that elsewhere, I think he is going to be frustrated, especially cause the Yankees won't be there driving the price up. If A-Rod were most interested in the money and fame, which it appears he is, his best bet was the Yankees and in shunning them, he made himself look like more of a douche than was possible. Last night he said he couldn't go to Coors Field to accept the Hank Aaron award because of family obligations, but he was free enough to have his agent call FOX field reporter Ken Rosenthal so he could announce it during Game 4 of the World Series. What a selfish piece of garbage. If there was still a question that this was all about A-Rod, it was answered. MLB was furious with Rodriguez and Boras about this decision, and they should be. I mean heck, the only way last night could have been worse would have been if the Yankees had lost the World Series on the same night the Red Sox won it, and that's not even possible, so last night was it: the team I hate reaching the pinnacle of the baseball world and my team's and baseball's best hitter telling everyone he was testing the open market. We will see what happens though i would advise the Red Sox against going after A-Rod and messing up a good thing and I would hope the Yankees stay true to their word. Don't get me wrong, I would love A-Rod in the lineup, cause he really is the best player in the game right now, maybe ever, but after this whole performance, it would be ridiculous. A-Rod=douche.

Another newsworthy item that came to everyone's attention today was the Yankees announcing they had offered their vacant managerial position to former Marlin manager and former Yankee, Joe Girardi. They didn't offer to to the favorite, Don Mattingly, and that surprised me. However, i think Giardi is a better choice. I think he is a good manager, and he knows about the whole Yankee system, being a player in NY for a good 4 seasons. I like Giardi cause he is a winner, a winner who won without the most talent, he just did what he had to do and was successful. A new era is ushered in, and I can smell the roses....I think.

A lot of people have been talking about how the Yankees are going to stink next year without Joe Torre and without A-Rod. Are you serious? First of all, the managerial thing is really not a big deal. Look at the 04 Red Sox, if you didn't notice, they had a new manager that year. Oh, how about the 96 Yankees? That's right, Joe Torre's first year. 2003 Marlins? Jack McKeon was hired MID-SEASON and they went on to win. And the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks? Yup, Bob Brenly's first year as manager. So the managerial thing doesn't really matter. Yes, Joe Torre worked magic, or he used to anyway. When you aren't successful in winning with a team, and with the Yankees it is about winning in the playoffs, then it's time to go. And that's what happened with Joe Torre. Ok, so new manager, that's not going to be that big of an issue, the players always want to win. How about those players? So many people out there seem to be talking about the 2008 Yankees as if they switched rosters with the Kansas City Royals...hardly. Chances are they exercise their option on Abreu, and offer Posada and Rivera huge contracts while helping Andy Pettitte exercise his player option for next year. If all that comes true you are looking at a team with position players with the last names of Jeter, Damon, Matsui, Cano, Abreu, Posada, Cabrera, then there's Giambi, who is still solid. Year there are some weak spots, sure, but every team has that, I can point out the Red Sox flaws too. Then there is the pitching, well you roll out a starting rotation of Wang (19 wins), Phil Hughes, Joba and Ian Kennedy, well that's pretty darn good. A still solid bullpen when you add an arm, with Rivera and you still have a playoff team, I'll guarantee it. Sure, with A-Rod they were a lot better offensively, but I think someone out there, who is solid will find their way into pinstripes. The Yankees are going to have a good team next year so all of you who are already predicting .500 baseball from the Bronx Bombers in Yankee Stadium's last season, i think you'll be sorely mistaken....

Well, that's all for tonight. Congratulations again to the Boston Red Sox and their fans. They truly were the best team this year and this title is most deserved.

Breaking News: A-Rod Gone. Not Breaking News: Red Sox 6 outs from World Title

2007-10-28T20:11:00.000-07:00

So, reading on several different websites, it appears that Alex Rodriguez will opt out of his current contract with the Yankees. This means, if you have read anything lately, that his tenure with the Yankees, after four years is over. Brian Cashman has stated on several occasions that if A-Rod opts out, the Yankees will not go after him. Interesting developments so far that have made me sick to my stomach a little bit....

Oh, and the Red Sox are currently 6 outs away from their second world title in 4 years or something like that. Maybe it's 3 years, what do I know.

So, it appears that most of what I have hypothesized on this blog so far has NOT come true. Well, that's what happens. Just goes to show you, since I have read on many websites that A-Rod was planning to renegotiate, including the god-like ESPN, that no one really knows what is going on. This of course will make the offseason very interesting...

One Sox Win Away from Red Sox Nation-Wide Jubilation

2007-10-28T10:34:00.000-07:00

I am currently writing this post while watching Game 3 (it's in the third and it's 1-0 Sox, with Matt Holliday at the plate....this will NOT lead to a run). Anyway, I guess now I'm resigned to the fact that the Red Sox are going to win, not hard to realize that. It's been an interesting series cause (ok, he just struck out, I told you) I feel as though in Games 2 and 3 the Rockies were really close to taking the lead. Game 2 it would've been a little harder, but I mean, they had some chances and just failed to capitalize. Last night, when pinch hitter whomever mcwhomever was hitting against Timlin in the 6th, I mean, he almost made it a 6-3, it was just a SICK play by Julio Lugo that kept it 6-2. Now, of course if he had singled, then Matsui had hit in the 6th and not the 7th, so that would have meant Holliday's 3-run home run wouldn't have necessarily happened but it would've kept the Rockie momentum in the 6th, and if you watched, Timlin was not pitching well. He gave up an RBI hit, and one bomb and one line drive. The bomb to center by so close to going out. Where was the thin air on that one? Of course, despite all of this hindsight predictions, the Red Sox are dominating. Nowhere in the recesses of my mind did I think that Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia would be contributing this much in the World Series. I mean, I watched during the regular season and Pedroia was solid (I would still take Cano 99/100 times, or Chase Utley) but he's a solid player and Ellsbury was really solid, or great, much better than Crisp. But coming into the postseason, I was not sold on either. And boy, they have proved me wrong. Pedroia just works his ass off and it really shows. Ellsbury is fantastic right now with superb bat control, speed and great defense in center. They both are the complete package and without them in the lineup last night, that game does not go the Red Sox way. Right now I look at a join MVP award, shared, like Schilling and Johnson did in '01, between Pedroia and Ellsbury. Heck, Pedroia set the tone for the World Series in Game 1, and it has just all the way gone in the Red Sox favor....

Ok, well, i'm depressed but the Red Sox deserve their due. They've been fantastic and granted they never really faltered when they didn't have a choice in the ALCS. It's impressive. I wanted the Indians to win, and it looked like they were going to, but weird thing is...I never though they would actually pull it off. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I always knew it was going to be the Red Sox, and that does not bode well for me. I shouldn't have that much faith in a team I hate. But, It appears that it is about to get very crazy as it did in 2004 on this campus. I got an e-mail sent out to the entire University community by the provost today letting everyone now that ridiculous shenanigans by students would not be tolerated since in '04, it was absolutely anarchic. The police had to be called in, with rubber bullets, vandalism, etc. So, I hope they can celebrate with some more class this year. But who knows...it is college.

Currently the Red Sox, with a 1-0 lead are about 18 outs away from victory. I hope the Rockies can save a little face by winning one game for their fans who although they are the biggest bandwagon fans EVER (they didn't follow a very good exciting young team in the regular season) they have been very loud during the two games so far at Coors. Coors by the way is really beautiful. I have been there and it is just an unbelievable stadium with awesome views, a sweet playing surface and really nice facilities. I hope people get excited about the Rockies and they get just a little more pitching. Then they'll be ready to compete year in and year out.

Alright, well, I guess I better finish watching game 4. Lester looks good, so does Cook, unfortunately he already gave up a run. What's the deal with Manny knocking his helmet off every time he runs? God, I hate him. He's a first ballot hall of famer, but he's such a wench sometimes...I hope Torrealba goes to tag him in the head next time. Give him a good ringer....Go Rockies.....? We'll see though it's looking as though the Purple and Black are going to get a taste of their own postseason medicine.

A Dull Baseball Friday and A-Rod

2007-10-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday, Friday, was not really that eventful in the baseball world. Of course, after next week, there's a chance that everyday could be without anything eventful baseball-wise, so I'd better get used to it. The World Series resumes tonight in Colorado and the Rockies, and everyone not part of Red Sox Nation is hoping it kind of rejuvenates the Rockies. I think Major League Baseball hopes it does too, ratings wise anyway. An exciting series is much better for them, and much better for the casual baseball fan and a Red Sox win tonight basically elminates all chances of said exciting series.

One thing that has come to my attention is the A-Rod Update. I have been reading elsewhere on the internets that the Yankees are set to offer A-Rod an extension. The extension, supposedly, would be for 5 years, and 30 million dollars per those extra five years. That deal will keep the current deal that he has, the one originally offered by Texas and signed by A-Rod in 2000, in place. THAT means, that the subsidy the Rangers still offer the Yankees, in paying a hefty amount of A-Rod's current salary will still be in place. That means that with the extension, A-Rods deal will be worth roughly 8 years, $231 million. He would certainly still be the highest paid player, but the Yankees would still have that subsidy for the first three years. That's what is important to the Yankees. If A-Rod opts out of his current contract, and still wants to remain with the Yankees, they would have to sign a whole new deal, and the Yanks would lose that subsidy. That is why the Yankees' management has mentioned multiple times, they will not pursue Mr. Rodriguez if he, in fact, opts out. A-Rod's agent, the infamous Scott Boras has lately been mentioning plenty about A-Rod's plans, but many, including me, think this is just to bulk up the contract. I think both of them know, the Yankees, are really, the ONLY team who has the financial capabilities to give him what he wants. That's why i think in the end, he will remain with the Yanks. I hope it happens, because i worship A-Rod, and he makes their lineup exponentially better, but it's been a while since the best player in baseball wore pinstripes, and I would like that to be maintained.

So basically that's what's going on: not much. There is something I would like to pass on. One of the blogs I have been reading of late, introduced to me by my currently vacant co-writer Mr. Gelbs is called www.firejoemorgan.com. This is a very, very funny, sarcastic blog run by a bunch of guys who believe in sabermetrics and those advanced stats that tell a better story of baseball than batting average, wins, etc. So, i would like to invite anyone who likes baseball, and laughing to head on over there, it's good stuff. Anyway, Game 3 begins in about 40 minutes for me here in Vermont and I'm waiting to see what happens. I'm rooting hard for the purple and black. I really don't know if I could psychologically take another Red Sox World Series title.......of course, i HAVE been watching the World Series, and I certainly know what direction it is taking...

Game 2: A little more intriguing, but, same result

2007-10-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

Game 2 was more intriguing. It was closer, some better pitching from the Rockies, less offense from the Red Sox (direct connection between those two things), but still, the big hit escaped the Rockies. I was one of those who praised the Rockie offense but as we have seen time and time again in the postseason, it really is pitching that works the best. Look at the Yankees of the past couple years, they had ridiculously good offenses and....well, it didn't yield results. The Rockies however, despite what I have said, were not even hitting well coming into this series. Maybe I was just banking my prediction on their ridiculous numbers up and down the lineup from the regular season. They only hit .222 in the NLCS, luckily for them the D'Backs (I always am so close to calling them the D'Bags, is that wrong?) were just as inept. But against the Red Sox, that sort of thing is not going to work. We watched all year as the American League proved it was SO much better than the National League and yet the World Series happened upon us and people still thought the Rockies had a chance (including me). Now looking back on the postseason, and the teams from each league, does anyone actually believe that any of the NL teams could've beaten any of the AL teams (except the Angels who, with their injuries, were playing like an NL team...and I hate them)? I don't think so. Yankees-Phillies? Yankees-Cubs, D'Backs? How about Indians vs. those same teams? I mean, yes, the playoffs are random, for sure, that sort of thing happens. But most of the time the team that is better does win, and that is the case right now. And at this moment, the Red Sox are quite unbeatable right now. But of course, that could change when Dice-K gets on the mound in Coors Field where breaking balls break less and the outfield is monstrous (look for Manny to struggle covering that much ground). But with Okajima pitching like he did in the beginning of the year, and Papelbon just throwing gas, it doesn't look good. I mean, Dice-K is good for what? 110 pitches and about 4 2/3 or 5? Yeah, well, then all you need is one pitcher to get it to the 7th and Oki, and then maybe 2 from him, or 2 from Papelbon, and what does that lead to? Victory. Hey, I'm still rooting for the Rockies and yeah World Series' can change. '96 is the ultimate example for me, since I actually watched it. But for that to happen, the Rockies are going to need some help. Hopefully the expansive outfield and thin air will help them but...oh wait, the Red Sox, who are hitting exponentially better get the same thing...hmmm. That's interesting. I guess we'll just have to play the games, but isn't that always the case?

Oh, and a few notes about the broadcast and other things baseball:
-I am SO sick of shots of the Red Sox bullpen doing their stupid rhythm section crap. How many times do we have to see this? I mean, yes, it was very entertaining, the first time, and yes, it seems like they're having fun....but I get it. Enough.

-I don't know if this is just me, and maybe cause I have experience playing baseball, and catching, and therefore I see pitches from the best possible view, but it REALLY bothers me when so called experts like Tim McCarver cannot correctly tell me what pitch was just thrown. They have that stupid pitch track thing with the MPH of each pitch and everything, but still, they call change-ups breaking balls, and vice versa. They call splitters breaking balls and vice versa. It is just annoying. Give me some money, I'll get in the booth, and tell America what was just thrown.

-Supposedly there is a rule Major League Baseball has that says teams cannot announce important news during the World Series. Consequently, the league's marquee franchise, the Yankees, are currently involved in a high-profile search for their next manager. And supposedly, they are close to closing the deal (it looks like Mattingly with a possibility of Tony Pena as the bench coach, which Joe Girardi headed out west to the Dodgers, even though they have a manager...). Does anyone actually believe the young Steinbrenner's who have taken control will actually wait to announce this information? I don't think so. And even if they don't officially, they'll find a way to leak it out.

-I recently read an article about former Senator George Mitchell's steroid investigation and supposedly when he releases his report in November or December it will be "salacious" and will name names. Is anyone else kind of freaked out about this? I mean, we all know that everyone was on steroids (that is an exaggeration, but is it really?) and yet, will the naming of certain people hurt us as fans more than others? Apparently it is not bothering the regular baseball fan, since baseball set a new record for attendance this year. But maybe there is this mythic aspect we hold for these players and we don't want it to be violated. Maybe I'm a little bitter at some former Senator for potentially being the person to burst that bubble. All i'm hoping for is that my favorite players won't be on it, just for their reputation's sake. I mean, what can MLB actually do? It wasn't against the rules, so can they suspend them ex post facto? I don't think so. The best they can do is submit all of the information to the Feds and see if they can do something about it...though they probably can't. It will be very interesting I say. For our greatest heroes, I hope it ends well for them.

Anyway, that's what I have to say on this Friday morning. Let's see what happens when baseball resumes in the cold of Colorado on Saturday night.

Bollocks: Rockies Rocked in Game 1

2007-10-25T05:31:00.001-07:00

Hmmm, well, let's just say that the only person I felt worse for last night, other than the Rockies pitching staff was Eric Byrnes. I don't know if anyone caught the pregame show, with the crackhead FOX team of Jeanne "My Hair Is Humongous" Zelasko, Eric "I Speak In A Monotone" Karros, Kevin "I Wish I Had This Good A Team When I Managed In Boston" Kennedy and Eric Byrnes, the charismatic, crazy, semi-overrated because of his "Eckstein Hustle Factor" outfielder from Arizona, but Zelasko would not stop taking shots at Byrnes. I think she mentioned about four times, straight up, that Byrnes is a big reason Colorado is in the WS, cause, well, he and his entire team sucked against the Rocks in the NLCS. She just kept bringing it up and I felt bad for Eric. I mean, he's a fiery guy, and although he obviously has a sense of humor, I have a feeling that sort of thing just felt awkward for him; and me for that matter.

Anyway, the game...ah, the game. Well it wasn't pretty. I haven't seen a team this hot in the Postseason, over an extended amount of time since the '99 Yankees. I would say the '04 Red Sox, but this team is only half way to what that team accomplished winning streak wise. I mean, the '99 Yankees lost only one game in the postseason, and it was to Pedro Martinez, who by the way, arguably had the best season EVER for a pitcher that year and was at the top of his game. I mean, if you're going to lose one game in the postseason, losing it to that guy, well I guess that's understandable. Other than that, the Yankees cruised through that postseason....but not really like these Red Sox are. I mean, the Sox are not even joking around. They are just hammering everything. I knew, watching the first inning, that this would not be Jeff Francis' night. I mean, everything that was hit off of him was smoked, starting with Pedroia's leadoff home run. It was ridiculous. Even Ortiz's ground out was hit pretty hard. He wasn't changing speeds, trying to replicate Josh Beckett's 3 strike out, all fastball virtuoso first inning performance, but...sorry to break it to you Jeff, but you throw 89-91, not 95-97...Beckett can get away with missing his spots on his fastball. You cannot. Never the less, even if Francis had a quality start (at least 6 innings pitched with three runs or less allowed), it wouldn't have mattered cause once again, Beckett proved that he is pitching, well, unbelievably. Just nasty. Spotting his fastball, both four- and two-seamer. When he mixes in the change it dives down and away from lefties, and heck, is curveball is just ridiculous right now. Even when he misses with it, it's not up and out over the plate. It is either in, or way down, and even then, you're going to get some of these Rockies hitters to swing at that.

I don't think I need to write anything about the Red Sox offense. Seeing Pedroia lead off with a home run gave me a bad feeling cause, well, he doesn't hit that many home runs and that ball was smoked. It just got out of Fenway over the Monster, but at a lot of other stadiums (save Yankee Stadium, cause it is like 800 feet to left-center, ok, well 399, but still, that's a monster shot for the power alley), that would've been easily out. There is going to have to be some miracle to slow down the Red Sox offense. Could it be Jimenez tonight for the Rockies? Yes. Will it be...? Probably not. I mean, it's only been a day, and after watching the game last night, do I think that this series has even a chance of returning to Boston? Well, yeah...a chance. The Rockies will have to get it turned around and they all need to get on base for Troy Tulowoidniniski, or however you spell his name. He is ridiculously good, with his glove AND bat. Those two doubles he hit off Beckett were just right on the screws. I mean, the way he hit last night, he would've been better suited for the Red Sox lineup, and let me tell you that I think any Red Sox fan would be fine switching him and Lugo...defense especially. Anyway, so tonight is Game 2, and any baseball person will tell you that momentum is only as good as the next day's starting pitcher. But I'm a baseball person, and regrettably, I'm going to tell you that right now, I don't think it matters who the Rockies put on the mound, the Red Sox are swinging video game bats right now. I mean, double digits in what, three straight games? That's ridiculous. Something is going to have to happen quickly for the Rockies. I am hoping that the 8-day layoff was all washed away last night and maybe they'll be better off facing Curt Schilling, who just doesn't throw 97 anymore. I mean, the Yankees in '96 had a long layoff and lost the first two games of the World Series to the Braves by a combined score of 16-1 (12-1, 4-0), and they went on to win. So anything can happen though all signs are pointing to yet another Red October.

I can't write another post about the Red Sox without mentioning my (and yes, they're mine) Yankees who are in the midst of a managerial search. Now, I am a huge Joe Torre fan. This is probably because he got to the postseason all 12 years he managed, and won 6 pennants and of course 4 World Series. But, I think it was truly time for him to go. I mean, think about it: what is a manager judged on for most teams? Winning games. Well, with the Yankees and the lineup they have put out there over the last 5, 6, 13 years, that's not going to be an issue. I have a feeling a demented monkey could manage that team into the playoffs. What the Yankee managers are really judged on is postseason success and lately, there has not been much of it. And when there isn't success, it's time for a change. No, I'm not blaming Torre for the recent postseason failures, it is all on the players: Jeter and Wang this year, A-Rod and the pitching last year, the pitching in '05, everyone in '04. Those weren't really Joe's fault. But this team was good enough to win in each of those years, and when it doesn't happen, sometimes you just need to make a change. There have been personnel changes, but I think maybe it was time for change at the top. I mean, I'll be honest, I was very depressed when Joe didn't accept the Yankees' terms because he is the only manager i have really ever known for my team. I remember the tail end of the Buck Showalter era, but not much. '96 was really the first year I paid attention and that was Torre's first year at the helm. I think this change is important but now the real questions begin: who will be put in charge. There were three candidates interviewed and apparently the decision as to who is selected could come today (Thursday). The three choices are former Yankees star first baseman, and recent hitting and bench coach Donnie-Baseball Mattingly. Then there is former Yankees World Series star, and 2006 Florida Marlins manager Joe Girardi. And then there is Yankees current first-base coach, catching coach, former Manager of the Year winner with the Kansas City Royals, Tony Pena. Now, I know Mattingly is the front runner, but to be honest, I don't think he's ready. I know George loves him but I don't think that's enough. My top two choices are Girardi or Pena. I think both would be great. Girardi has a relationship with the old guard of the Yankee players (Rivera, Jeter, Pettitte, Posada), and I think that is important. He also has a history of dealing with a young pitching staff, which he did with Florida and right now the Yankees HAVE a young pitching staff including Ian Kennedy, Phil Hughes and Joba of course. I think he would be a great fit as long as he doesn't EVER bunt, or play any version of National League baseball. Then there is Pena who is very popular with the Latin players, especially Jorge Posada, who attributes his defensive improvement to Pena, a former catcher. He is also very popular with the younger players, like Robby Cano and Melk-man Cabrera. I think either of those choices would be a good one. What I need is for Posada, Rivera and Pettitte to stay cause they make up the solid base of this team. I think without Posada they are not as good, and even though I love Mariano, he is getting up there, and although I dont' want him to pitch for anyone else, that is the business and if he wants to leave, maybe it's time. They need Posada, he is the rock and Pettitte would be very helpful. No Clemens please. Whoever is the manager I think will have control over a very good Yankee team, but that team will be much better if it includes Posada, Rivera and Pettitte. I'm leaning towards Pena, but I actually think it will be Mattingly, and that will be very interesting. But as long as he doesn't play "Ozzie Guillen-ball" or bunt, and as long as he just writes out a lineup card, takes out pitchers and deals with the media, I think this team will win games.

Oh, and I figured I should mention something about that A-Rod guy. I think the Yankees should pay him WHATEVER he wants. He would be stupid to opt out because with the Yankees not in the market, and with the Red Sox, in my mind, probably not going after him, the market will be smaller. There just aren't many teams who have the resources to pay him what he wants. His best bet for money and fame, which is probably what he's after, is with the Yankees. And I think he knows that. I mean, there's nothing wrong with that, if that's what he's after, then fine. I just want him in the Yankees' lineup, cause it's ridiculous with him, and less ridiculous without him. Of course World Series victories come with fame, so he'll have to get his hands on one of those. But the Yankees should give him whatever he wants, if they do, well i think he'll stay and like I said, much better team with A-Rod in the lineup.

So there are my thoughts on this Thursday morning. I talked to my cowriter last night, and he said it would be a while before he could get his hands on a post here, he is studying abroad in Mexico this semester, so I'll try and hold down the fort as best I can. Feel free to be make the maiden comment on any of these posts. Just click the comment button on the bottom, you don't have to register or anything and just let me know what you're thinking. We'll see if there's any baseball news (especially Yankee managerial news) today and if not, then I'll probably check back here after Game 2.

MMM

World Series

2007-10-24T14:37:00.000-07:00

Alright, so it's Wednesday afternoon and I'm waiting for Game 1 of the World Series. Unfortunately for me, the Yankees are not participating and a team that has existed for all of 14 years is....weird. Nevertheless I am kind of excited for this, maybe because I feel as though the Rockies have a very good team, and a definite chance to get rid of those pesky Red Sox.

By the way, anecdote time: I have grown to hate the Red Sox more than I thought possible this postseason. Maybe that is because my team was dispatched quickly and I had nowhere else to focus my baseball energy (of which there is much) and so I focused it quite negatively on the Red Sox...But that is how I feel currently. I despise this team, very much, and I am very much rooting, and praying for the Rockies and for "Rocktober" (...) to continue.

Ok, I figure that all of the talk is through, i've been watching ESPN and they are going through withdrawal of the NFL and consistent baseball highlights over the last five days. They are obsessed with the most minute stuff. I think Pedro Gomez is having Barry Bonds withdrawal himself. I mean, did he ever expect to be covering the Rockies in the World Series? I dont' think so. I think he expected to spend much of his time sewn on to Barry Bonds' rather bulbous head...All i've been hearing about on SportsCenter and Baseball Tonight is about how the layoff for the Rockies is going to hurt them and althought their timing may be off, I'm thinking that any team that has won 21 out of their last 22 games is still going to be fresh. I would like to think so anyway. Plus, i've been trying to tune out most of the stuff that comes out of John Kruk's mouth and EVERYTHING that comes out of Steve Phillips' mouth, but it's unsuccessful. I'm just amazed at some of the things he says.

Anyway, I was thinking that i was going to breakdown the World Series here and see who was actually going to win, since I obviously know the answer....but then I figured, 'Hey, i think people have heard enough and are just anxious to get the games going and see what happens.' And I agree with that. Prediction wise, I'm going to have to go with what I kinda of think will happen, which is the same as what i REALLY want to happen. I think the Rockies are going to end up winning, in a longer series. I think their offense is playing at a more consistent level than the Red Sox right now, despite the Red Sox absolute domination of the Indians over the last three games of that series. Though it absolutely looked like the Indians just lost interest. Grady Sizemore? Hafner? Sabathia? Carmona? Betancourt? I mean, he was dirty, until Game 7 when it really mattered. I guess that is what happens. I think the Rockies are actually going to be fresh, especially bullpen and pitching wise and I think a Game 1 win would certainly make this series very interesting, handing home field over to the Rockies, and Coors Field is nuts right now. The Red Sox have a very good chance of winning this series. They are a very good team with a very good lineup. Youk is playing out of his mind right now, as is Pedroia and Drew for that matter. But i'm going to go with the upstart Rockies cause in 2003 I saw the same kind of thing: powerhouse Yankees with enough starting pitching against a young team with a lot of energy and a wise old veteran (Pudge), the Marlins. And we know what happened in that series. I consider this series similar to that one. Of course, if the Sox take the first two at Fenway, we're looking at a short series, I think the Rockies would flop, but I'm thinking, and praying for that matter, that that doesn't happen.

Even if we can't agree on who to root for, let's enjoy the Fall Classic for what it is: the bittersweet end to a season that began way back in February. Yeah, our teams aren't playing, most of us anyway, but we can still watch good baseball. And you can't deny that watching the Red Sox play at Fenway is exhilarating. I mean, if you like the mindboggling sound of tremendous cheers, or the sound of silence, whichever side you are rooting, it's a lot of fun. So, let's just enjoy the Fall Classic and hope Tim McCarver doesn't say too much dumb stuff...though I'm not holding my breath.

Welcome!

2007-10-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Baseball Moguls. This is a blog that my friend Gelbs and I decided to start due to the fact that recently we have both become enamored with the reading of blogs in general, and many specifically about baseball and also due the to the fact that we both are obsessed with the Grand Ol' Game. I will let my comrade speak for himself but I am currently a junior at the University of Vermont and although not a native Vermonter (I was born in NYC), I have lived here for most of my life. I am a huge baseball fan and played it all year round until only quite recently when the rigors of the academic world took over. That of course did nothing to temper my love of the game. It was only during this summer when I became very interested in what other people had to say about baseball on blogs and I always wondered if I could write one myself. But of course I wasn't completely interested in setting it up, so I was just resigned to continue to read what other people had to say. It was Gelbs who suggested it and after a couple of days struggling with what the title should be, we finally launched this sucker (and by we, I mean he, cause I did nothing).

My idea of this blog is simply that I envision it as a forum where Gelbs and I put forth our opinions on baseball and where people can certainly come in and comment. I'm not expecting a tremendous following, especially at the beginning, but after becoming a huge fan of blogs like FireJoeMorgan, per se, I'm hoping maybe one day this thing can really get going. I'll be completely honest though: I am a huge Yankee fan. I consider my religion Yankeeism and that just means that there will be a bias towards the Bronx Bombers. But this is not designed to be just about the Yankees, I feel like I know much about the entire league and I feel as though i'm willing to give credit where credit is due.

I hope this first post is one of many and I hope my fellow baseball fan extraordinaire, Mr. Gelbs can put his first post up and we can move from there.

So welcome to Baseball Moguls. A cleverly thought out name that both reflects our obvious expertise in the subject, and our Vermont roots and love of skiing. Very creative I think.

MMM