Archive for July, 2009
I love it when I see news about LaRoche,
â¢The Coyotes are staying in Phoenix. The NHL turns down $212 million bid for the team, accepts Jerry Reinsdorf’s offer of $64 million less. And yet, Bettman says “this had nothing whatsoever to do with the relocation issue.” That’s actually believable, considering the commish has made his career on terrible financial decisions. â¢Omar Minaya is “this close to being out of baseball,” says Mets exec. That’s not much of a threat, since what he’s put together can hardly be called “baseball.” â¢ESPN Radio host quits after being muzzled over Big Ben. The Roethlisberger controversy has claimed its first victim. Besides, you know, the woman claiming to be the victim. â¢Matt Garza plunked Mark Teixeira last night, and no one would have thought anything of it until he told reporters it was on purpose. Enjoy that 6-game suspension, Matt. â¢Sam Bradford, signing babies at the Big 12’s Media Days. Yes, he’s big news, but is he good enough to be the first player to win two Heismans before becoming an NFL bust? â¢Pirates trade away whatever they had left. For posterity, here’s their starting lineup from yesterday’s game: Andrew McCutchen, Andy LaRoche, Delwyn Young, Garrett Jones, Steve Pearce, Brandon Moss, Ramon Vazquez, Jason Jaramillo. I…I don’t even have a joke here.
Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter’s anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day..
Post your replies!
Searching for autographed baseball memorabilia? There is only one place you can go to ensure that the signatures are real - IronClad Athetics. These guys have lots of signed balls, bats, programs, gloves, and super prices, plus they have an Iron Clad Signature Authenticity guarantee, ensuring that every signature is 100% real, no imitations and no forgeries. Get authentic signed baseball memorabilia now.
Sanchez sure has been in the news a lot lately,
As a Batter’s Box Official Minor League Guy or something, that is an extremely un-PC thing to say. But Vegas, New Hampshire and Dunedin all won, while the rest of the affiliates lost. I’m allowed to be a fair-weather minor league updater, right? No? Okay, fine, here are all 6 recaps.
Las Vegas 8 at Portland 4
Holy RBI, Batman! Brian Dopirak had a huge game, going 2-4 with 2 HRs and seven (7!) RBIs. Yes, that means he hit both a grand slam and a three run jack. The game raised his post-promotion OPS from 734 to 866. Maybe there’s something to this kid! (and it should be noted this game was not played in Vegas) So, um, that accounted for most of the runs. Howie Clark got the other RBI, Travis Snider walked twice in 5 trips (and stole a base!), and J.P. Arencibia took an 0-fer.
On the mound, T.J. Beam was solid, allowing 4 runs on 7 hits and no walks in 6 innings, and Dirk Hayhurst responded to his demotion by striking out 5 of the 7 batters he faced (including one hit).
New Britain 4 at New Hampshire 5
The Fisher Cats got off to a fast start in this one, scoring twice in the second and then thrice more in the third. They would get shut down the rest of the way, but it was enough, as the pitching staff was able to hold on, despite New Britain scoring a run off closer Dan Farquhar in the ninth. Randy Boone allowed 3 runs (1 earned) in 6 innings to get the win, and most of the offense was provided by a 3 run blast courtesy of David Cooper. Brian Jeroloman went 2-3 with a triple.
After 8 innings, the score stood at 1-0 Jupiter. The D-Jays’ offense woke up just in time, scoring 4 in the 9th to make it a clean sweep in the upper half of the minors. The scoring went like this: Man-Rod walked, fly-out, Jaspe singled, Jesus Gonzalez double, Loewen 2-run single, Luis Sanchez HBP, double steal (with pinch-runner Raul Barron in for Sanchez), Brad McElroy RBI single. Man, it feels good to type it out.
Anyway, the Bobby Bell-as-starter experiment continued to yield positive results, as Bell allowed a run on 4 hits and a walk in 6 innings, striking out 7. In 4 starts, Bell has pitched 19 innings, allowed 14 hits and 5 walks, and struck out 23. This was his longest outing of the year. Tim Collins pitched 2 scoreless innings and struck out 3, getting the win and simultaneously his amazing 11th decision on the year (he’s 7-4).
None of the hitters really had great games - Man-Rod, Jaspe and Sanchez reached base twice.
Chase Lirette started for Lansing and only allowed 1s, 4s and 7s. He pitched 4.1 innings, allowed 4 runs on 7 hits and 1 walk, and struck out 7. Boy, I must be tired. Anyway, that obviously wasn’t a great performance, and try as they might, you can’t really expect the bullpen to pitch 4 2/3 scoreless innings, as they would have needed to to win this game.
A bunch of Nuts had good games at the plate: Chris Emanuele walked twice, Tyler Pastornicky singled twice and stole his 48th base, Brian Van Kirk singled, doubled, walked and drove in 3, Johermyn Chavez had 2 singles and 2 RBIs and the Great Balbino doubled twice and singled. Unfortunately, Lansing could only get 5 runs out of their 11 hits and 4 walks.
The bullpen was the highlight in this one - Matthew Morgal and Casey Beck combined for 4 scoreless innings. Other than that…. well, Dave Sever was okay in 5 innings, and Ryan Goins singled and doubled in 4 trips. That’s about all I want to say here.
GCL Blue Jays 4 at GCL Phillies 5
The G-Jays actually out-hit their Philly counterparts 11-7, but the G-Phils were able to convert their runners into runs a bit better. Interesting prospects: Gustavo Pierre went 2-5 with a steal, Ryan Schimpf tripled, walked and stole a base, and Carlos Perez pinch-hit and went 1-2.
Three Stars!
3. Dirk Hayhurst - 2 IP, 1 H, 5 K
2. Bobby Bell - 6 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 7 K
1. Brian Dopirak - 2 HRs, 7 RBIs
.
I’m willing to bet nobody saw that coming!
Take a look at a video of Sanchez:
Best Bet Major League Baseball Thursday Florida Marlins vs Atlanta Braves
Searching for autographed baseball memorabilia? There is only one place you can go to ensure that the signatures are real - IronClad Athetics. These guys have lots of signed balls, bats, programs, gloves, and pretty low prices, plus they have an Iron Clad Signature Authenticity guarantee, ensuring that every signature is 100% real, no imitations and no forgeries. Get authentic signed baseball memorabilia now.
It was just two years ago that Omar Minaya was a Sports Illustrated cover boy and subject of a fawning profile in which he was referred to simply as O. As in: Oh my, how things have changed.
Start with the cover, a portrait of the so-called Melting-Pot Mets, commandeered by Omar Teodoro Antonio Minaya y Sanchez. Or, O. Joining him on newsstands everywhere were Orlando Hernandez, Endy Chavez, John Maine, Oliver Perez and Willie Randolph. Three have since left the Mets, and the besuited gentleman in the middle may be next on the outbound train. After all, Tony Bernazard — the yin to Minaya’s yang — was recently the instigator in a Binghamton brawl, but with his reaction, Minaya managed to make himself the villain. (”Too wide-eyed, too trusting?” Gary Smith wrote of Minaya. “Well, here’s his narrow eyes, Tony Bernazard, the vice president of player development from Puerto Rico who squinted down O two years ago when he wanted to bring Sosa to the Mets.”)
Most of Smith’s flattering profile of Minaya analyzes his childhood and inability to snag a G.M. job. There are times, however, when Smith delves into Minaya’s psyche through the lens of miniscule anecdotes. Back in 2007, when Minaya walked around with a hat that simply read RELAX, it seemed quaint and adorable and, hey, look, the oh-so-metropolitan Mets are winning and it’s all because O is as inclusive as a circle, round and smooth, like a ring of trust. In hindsight, those same details seem strange. After Monday, they’re eerily foreboding.
The tide had shifted. Teams were hiring Ivy League grads to be their G.M.’s, lawyers and businessmen and statmongers who’d never hit fungoes to a flock of skinny 16-year-olds and picked out the weed that would bloom five years later. O’s frustration grew. “Look, if you want paperwork, I’m not your guy,” he’d tell his inquisitors. “I see the job in bigger terms. Paperwork, that’s false hustle. It takes away creativity. People who are into paperwork are into covering their asses, so if things go wrong they can point to all the work they did. They’re thinking more about failure than success. The more paperwork the opposition does, the better my chances are. Know what I’m sayin’?”
O awoke at four each morning, arrived at five, worked till 10 at night. Lunch? Wolf down a salad from the players’ spread. Dinner? Order in sandwiches. The phones sizzled, O looking for help, help looking for O. The office buzzed like mayflies with 24 hours to live. But O trusted tomorrow. The trust spread. “He energized everyone,” says his farm director, Adam Wogan. “You wanted to do it for Omar. You’d run through a wall for him.”
O twitched and turned down the job. It took one more year of misery for Mets owner Fred Wilpon—his team’s clubhouse divided, its credibility with fans and free agents shredded—to call back. “We’ve become irrelevant in New York City,” Wilpon told O in September 2004. “You’ve got to come home.”
“What’s the job?” asked O, wary.
“Everything,” said Wilpon. “I just want Omar to be Omar.”
O’s heart raced. “Let’s talk as soon as the season’s over,” he said.
Of course, this is all just another example of that pesky SI cover jinx. No one ever said it’s effective immediately.
The Story Of O Sports Illustrated
EARLIER: Minaya Sort Of Apologizes
EARLIER: Mets Season Descends Further Into Farce
.
I have always been a big fan of Sanchez, I have to say, seeing news like this gives me mixed feelings.This will be shocking news for Sanchez fans, but there are those of you who will say that you saw it coming from a mile away. I can’t say I’m all that surprised. Sanchez is neat, I really hope this doesn’t affect the season.
Here’s a clip of Sanchez:
SF Giants Jonathan Sanchez No Hitter, Final Out
Searching for autographed baseball memorabilia? There is only one place you can go to ensure that the signatures are real - IronClad Athetics. These guys have loads of different products, and super prices, plus they have an Iron Clad Signature Authenticity guarantee, ensuring that every signature is 100% real, no imitations and no forgeries. Get authentic autographed baseball memorabilia now.
For all you fans out there, here’s some news about Grabow:
The Astros will face the Cubs this afternoon with a depleted pitching staff. Ex-Cub LaTroy Hawkins, who is already in trouble with MLB for his comments made about the umpiring crew after Monday night’s game, will go on the disabled list today with shingles. Much as I don’t like Hawkins, I wouldn’t wish shingles on him — it can be extremely painful.
Doug Brocail, who is 42 years old and who had, among others, as teammates his rookie year in San Diego in 1992 Mike Maddux, Tony Gwynn Sr. and Larry Andersen (who is 56 years old), will be recalled to take Hawkins’ roster spot. The Astros will also be without Wesley Wright (who likely wouldn’t have pitched anyway today after throwing 51 pitches last night), because he was “rushed to the hospital following Tuesdayâs win because he was experiencing discomfort in the area around his appendix.”
Bruce Miles blogs about the Cubs’ continued interest in Pittsburgh’s John Grabow and Washington’s Joe Beimel as Lou continues to overwork his bullpen for no particular reason:
Worse yet, Lou had to use lefty Sean Marshall for a third straight game, making Marshall doubtful for Wednesday.
A number of us (yes, I hear you, Jessica) have been shouting real loud at Lou about this, but let’s try it again: Hey, Lou! Sean Marshall is a starting pitcher. If you have to use him early in a game, why not use him the way Cecil Cooper used Wright last night — for multiple innings? Marshall can get both LHB and RHB out.
The Cubs have more motivation to keep Houston from scoring today: shut them out and it costs Astros fans money. How? The Astros are discounting tickets for their next home series based on how many runs they score in Chicago:
For every run that the team scores during its July 27 to 30 series on the road against the Chicago Cubs, the team will drop the price on its field box tickets by $1 for the next home stand against the San Francisco Giants. The Giants play at Minute Maid Park Aug. 3 to 5.
So far Astros fans can save $12 per field box ticket. Let’s keep it that way. Onward to this afternoon’s matchup. (Hat tip to Big League Stew for the link.)
| Today’s Starting Pitchers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Randy Wells threw the first six innings vs. the Astros on May 16 at Wrigley Field, giving up no runs but winding up with a no-decision after Kevin Gregg blew the lead — Sean Marshall got the win when the Cubs came back in the last of the ninth. Wells gave up only four hits in that game, his only career appearance vs. Houston, all singles.
Mike Hampton might have been a Cub had Andy MacPhail been willing to spend as much as the Rockies did when they signed him in 2001. Good thing he didn’t — Hampton’s been pretty mediocre since signing that eight-year deal (save one decent year with Atlanta in 2003), which finally expired at the end of last year. The Cubs jumped all over him in the first inning on April 6 in Houston and he’s gotten pounded in his last three starts (7.80 ERA). Derrek Lee is only 7-for-31 (.229) vs. Hampton, but three of those hits are homers.
The Cubs are on WGN again today, and also on FSN Houston. For other games today see the MLB.com Mediacenter.
Baseball-reference.com game preview
Please visit our SB Nation Astros site The Crawfish Boxes.
Overflow comment threads will post today at 2:15 pm, 3:15 pm and 4 pm CDT.
Discuss amongst yourselves.
.
Let us know w you think.
Here’s a clip of Grabow:
Ryan Braun, Curtis Granderson, Jimmy Rollins & Derek Jeter @ 2009 World Baseball Classic on KayvonTV
Find great seating options, and great prices on baseball tickets - at TicketsNow! Going to the game shouldn’t cost you hundreds of dollars, so shop smart and compare lots of different tickets, all guaranteed to be 100% authentic and delivered in time for the game.
Check out who is making news: young! Bill James Pokes a Bee Hive. For you convenience, we have a summary - “The only constant factor to be found in my thinking over the years has been opposition to accepted opinions.”
- Pierre Trudeau
Bill James, who hasn’t much to say about the subject over the years, offered up some provocative thoughts about how the Steroid Era will look down the road.To make a long story short, he thinks it’s ultimately going to have no impact at all on things like the Hall of Fame, and he suspects that in 40 years or so people will certainly have a very different perspective on the matter. If they’re not wondering what we were so excited about. He has four points to make:
1) Steroids, or their descendants, are the human future. Steroids, he observes, help athletes fight back against the inevitable process of aging. Then, in the purest Trudeau fashion, he innocently asks what’s wrong with that. He proceeds to answer his own question. With a twist.
What�s wrong with that is that steroids may help keep players �young� at some risk to their health, and the use of steroids by athletes may lead non-athletes to risk their health as well. But the fact is that, with time, the use of drugs like steroids will not disappear from our culture. It will, in fact, grow, eventually becoming so common that it might almost be said to be ubiquitous. Everybody wants to stay young. As we move forward in time, more and more people are GOING to use more and more drugs in an effort to stay young. Many of these drugs are going to be steroids or the descendants of steroids.
Which means that come the brave new world, when the ice caps have melted and pestilence and famine are ravaging the planet - I’m going to miss out on all this, I fear - the baseball players of the last fifteen years can at least be comforted by knowing that they will no longer be regarded as semi-criminals. They’re going to look more like pioneers. This is an extremely novel notion.
2) The slippery slope phenomena. “Once some players who have been associated with steroids are in the Hall of Fame, the argument against the others will become un-sustainable.”
That’s logical enough, I suppose. I do think there’s a problem in assuming that logic is going to have a significant role in this type of discussion.
3) Time heals all wounds. “History is forgiving. Statistics endure.”
True dat. There have been reports this very week that Bud Selig is reassessing baseball’s position regarding Pete Rose, whose trangressions were against rules far more entrenched and far more explicit than anything Mark McGwire is alledged to have done. With enough time, anything can be forgiven. As long as I have been paying attention to baseball, there has been a significant part of the baseball community petitioning for Joe Jackson - Joe Jackson - to be forgiven and admitted to the Hall of Fame. Someday it may even happen. Well, obviously if you’re going to give Pete Rose a pass in the fulltime - never mind Shoeless Joe himself - it’s not hard to extend the same courtesy to Bonds, McGwire, Clemens, Palmeiro and the rest.
4) The Buddy System, because “Old players play a key role in the Hall of Fame debate. It seems unlikely to me that aging ballplayers will divide their ex-teammates neatly into classes of �steroid users� and �non-steroid users.�
Thaty’s true - I don’t pay much attention myself to the views of old players, but they do appear to carry a fair bit of weight. I think it’s the main reason that Jim Rice is finally in the Hall of Fame.
And to wrap up:
was there really a rule against the use of Performance Enhancing Drugs? At best, it is a debatable point. The Commissioner issued edicts banning the use of Performance Enhancing Drugs…. But �rules�, in civilized society, have certain characteristics. They are agreed to by a process in which all of the interested parties participate. They are included in the rule book. There is a process for enforcing them. Someone is assigned to enforce the rule, and that authority is given the powers necessary to enforce the rule. There are specified and reasonable punishments for violation of the rules.
The �rule� against Performance Enhancing Drugs, if there was such a rule before 2002, by-passed all of these gates. It was never agreed to by the players, who clearly and absolutely have a right to participate in the process of changing any and all rules to which they are subject. It was not included in any of the various rule books that define the conduct of the game from various perspectives. There was no process for enforcing such a rule. The punishments were draconian in theory and non-existent in fact.
It seems to me that, with the passage of time, more people will come to understand that the commissioner�s periodic spasms of self-righteousness do not constitute baseball law. It seems to me that the argument that it is cheating must ultimately collapse under the weight of carrying this great contradiction�that 80% of the players are cheating against the other 20% by violating some �rule� to which they never consented, which was never included in the rule books, and which for which there was no enforcement procedure. History is simply NOT going to see it that way.
In other words, it will prove impossible to describe as cheaters those who violated a rule to which they never consented, which was never included in the rule books, and for which there was no enforcement procedure. Logical - but again, I think there’s a problem in assuming that logic is going to have a significant role in this type of discussion.
Have at it.
.
How do you think this news will affect the rest of the team this season?
Want to give yourself an edge? Want the same professional equipment that the pros use? Want to steal a few dollars off the price? Get free shipping on orders over $99 when you shop online at BaseballRampage. These guys have nearly everything you could need, from bats balls and gloves to cleats, bases, even pitching machines.
I wonder how young’s fans feel: “
Forget the fact that it’s James Madison University vs. Marist. A dispute over a departed coach bringing previously recruited players to his new school has led to one of the oddest lawsuits in college sports.
Matt Brady was the basketball coach at Marist from 2004 to 2008, when he left for JMU. Four of his prep prospects - one signed, two orally comitted, one had not announced a decision - followed. In the world of college hoops, that’s pretty standard.
What’s not standard is the contract Brady had signed with Marist. It included a provision preventing him from continuing to recruit players he had contact with at Marist. So the school is suing Brady, JMU, and the entire Commonwealth of Virginia.
From a legal standpoint, the contract’s standing is iffy. Specifically, it affects third parties who were not party to the contract at all: the players. You can’t bar an 18-year-old from attending a specific college because of a contract he had nothing to do with.
I don’t know how something like that could hold up. If a coach leaves and a young man says, âCoach, I want to go where you’re going,’ a university doesn’t have that power,” Hofstra coach Tom Pecora said. “If they don’t have anything signed, how in the world could a university dictate their recruitment? As much as we want to say recruits sign with a university, there is a relationship there.”
Pretty much everyone agrees this lawsuit will have larger implications, if not an immediate impact. The wording of contract clauses could get a lot more specific and effective in reining in coaches planning to jump ship. Will John Calipari ever agree to a contract again?
Marist Clause Unusual? Daily News-Record
“
what do you think?How do you think this news about young will affect the rest of the team this season?
Want to give yourself an edge? Want the same professional equipment that the professional athletes use? Want to buy it for less? Get $0 shipping on orders over $99 when you shop at BaseballRampage. These guys have practically everything you need, from bats balls and gloves to cleats, bases, even pitching machines.
Sanchez needs to be traded -
Another ugly day on the farm included just one win, all the way down in Low-A ball while two pitchers, including a rehabbing righty, left their starts early. Happy Monday!
Not a good night for rehabbing Jays in this one. Shaun Marcum started and went two innings, allowing a run on two hits and a walk. After 34 pitches, he was gone. No reason was stated and a quick search online doesn’t mention the reason for his departure. In any event, Davis Romero replaced him and was rocked for five earned runs over 1.2 frames. Later, Casey Janssen managed two thirds of an inning allowing four runs on three hits and a walk. Yikes.
At the plate, Jason Lane, Kyle Phillips and Travis Snider all homered for Vegas. For Snider, who added another hit, it helped snap a 4-for-31 streak. Travis’s AAA line now stands at 227/330/433. Randy Ruiz added his 40th (!) double and 91st (!) RBI while Angel Sanchez was 3-for-5 with two doubles and two RBI.
Things weren’t much better over in the Eastern League. Reidier Gonzalez started for the Fisher Cats and lasted precisely four batters before leaving with a groin injury. Adrian Martin relieved him and was knocked around for 5 runs over 4.1 innings to seal the loss for the Fisher Cats. Nathan Starner and Leon Boyd both appeared and allowed a run each.
Not a whole lot to mention at the plate. Brad Emaus and Scott Campbell each contributed two hits. Emaus and David Cooper each doubled while one of Campbell’s knocks went for a homer.
Oh, good grief. Dunedin managed their first hit of the day with one out in the 8th when Matthew Liuzza doubled. And that was that. Seriously.
Andrew Liebel started for the D-Jays and pitched extremely well despite the loss. Liebel went 6 innings and allowed a run on a walk and seven hits. He struck out six. Tim Collins pitched in with a shutout inning which included a strikeout.
Victory! The Lugnuts pulled one out thanks in large part to Tyler Pastornicky who was 2-for-5 with a double, run, RBI and two stolen bases to give him 47 on the season. Kenny Wilson chipped in with a double and an outfield assist while A.J. Jimenez had two hits.
Chris Holguin took the hill for Lansing and provided 5.1 innings of one run ball while three relievers combined for 9 strikeouts over the final 3.2 innings, including the final six outs. Matthew Daly saved his 17th with 4 K’s over 1.1 innings.
Despite four doubles, Auburn managed just one run in dropping another one. I don’t think I’ve written about a Doubleday win yet. Anyway, Ryan Goins was 2-for-4 to move to 11-for-25 in his short NYPL career. Sean Ochinko added a double while Eric Eiland was 0-for-3.
Evan Crawford started and took the loss for Auburn with 2.2 innings of work. Three relievers combined to keep things close. So there was that. Oh, and Sequoyah Stonecipher homered for Jamestown. Which sounds really cool to say.
Gulf Coast League Blue Jays had the day off. It’s safe to say they probably would’ve lost, though.
Three Stars:
3rd Star: Randy Ruiz; 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI, BB
2nd Star: Tyler Pastornicky; 2-for-5, R, 2B, RBI, 2 SB (47)
1st Star: Andrew Liebel; 6 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
.
I want to see how this is going to effect the rest of the season.
Searching for autographed baseball memorabilia? There is only one place you can go to ensure that the signatures are real - IronClad Athetics. These guys have tons of different products, and super prices, plus they have an Iron Clad Signature Authenticity guarantee, ensuring that every signature is 100% real, no imitations and no forgeries. Get fantastic autographed baseball memorabilia now.
I wonder how Duke’s real fans feel -
It’s everyone’s favorite time of the year, so gather the kids around the fire and let’s speculate away to our heart’s content. Cardinals - Like those annoying folks that get their Christmas shopping done early, the Cards are probably done wheeling and dealing picking up Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa. They missed out on the Christmas sales and paid a steep price in prospects, but they should help a team that has basically been riding a 16-7 April to justify the spending spree. Brewers - They found an early deal getting Felipe Lopez to play second base for them and you know they’re searching far and wide for a starting pitcher. They seemed to scoff at adding Doug Davis into that Lopez deal, but looks like they have their sites set on Wisconsin native, Jarrod Washburn. Considering they have the third worst ERA in the league, and second worst among starters, I’m not sure adding Washburn and his Safeco-aided ERA is really gonna be much of a boost.
Astros - Quietly the best team in the Central since June, they’ve been pretty quiet in the rumor mill. Despite some reported financial struggles, Drayton McClane has a never quit mentality, soI wouldn’t be surprised if they skip this deadline and look to make an August waiver trade if necessary.
Reds - Rumors abound that they were still looking for hitting, and they are in desperate need of some, but the current 6-game losing streak, has put them a lot closer to last than first. We’ll see if they switch to sellers and start pawning off some of their bullpen or be bold and look to move Aaron Harang or Bronson Arroyo, although that’s doubtful. Arthur Rhodes has received the most buzz so far as a player that could be moved.
Pirates - The Pittsburgh Perpetual Sellers still have a few chips they could move, namely Zach Duke, John Grabow, Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson. And Grabow and Sanchez sure wouldn’t be poor additions to the Cubs. Sanchez though has that $8M vesting option based on plate appearances(600 since he made the All-Star team) which it looks like he’ll hit, so that complicates matter significantly. If the Cubs could fit that $8M into the budget, my guess is they’re going to try and keep second base flexible for a run at Chone Figgins this offseason.
Cubs - There’s no doubt that Hendry is working the phone lines and trying to find something. Lou recently pined for that left-handed middle of the order bat again as Bradley isn’t cutting it there with the walks and the singles. Chances are they’ll just have to hope he figures it out in the last two-plus months.
A left-handed reliever seems to be the main focus. With the potential additions of B.J. Ryan and a trade, they could move Sean Marshall back to the rotation and try and weather the starting pitching injuries that have recently hit the team. Some names mentioned are Grabow, Rhodes, Joe Beimel and George Sherrill.
Knowing Hendry, he is looking to go big and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s at least kicked the tires on Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee and then realized the sticker price is too high. I guess if there’s one pitcher that may justify the load in prospects it could be Dan Haren. He’s having another fantastic season in Arizona, with an obscene 7.42 K/BB ratio to follow up his 5.15 from last year. He’s also signed through 2012 with a 2013 club option. The problem with Haren though is that he seems to tail off in the second half with a 3.08 career ERA before the break and 4.10 after the break, although the win percentage has stayed about the same if you’re into that kind of thing. Plus he’s an ex-Cardinal, so the Cubs can get back at the Cards for acquiring Mark DeRosa.
Bruce Levine also mentioned Mark Teahen and Orlando Cabrera in his article yesterday. I guess you can’t have enough utility players in the NL. Cabrera has warmed up a bit since his awful start and brings solid defensive work with him and could move Ryan Theriot to second base at times.
We get a sideshow to go along with the actual show this week, as those super-hot Astros show up for a four-game set to take on our FIRST PLACE Cubs.
what do you think?How do you think this news about Duke will affect the team this season?
Take a look at a video of Duke:
Maybe Baseball Should Investigate Congress
Searching for autographed baseball memorabilia? There is only one place you can go to ensure that the signatures are real - IronClad Athetics. These guys have tons of selection, and super prices, plus they have an Iron Clad Signature Authenticity guarantee, ensuring that every signature is 100% real, no imitations and no forgeries. Get authentic signed baseball memorabilia now.
I wonder how young’s serious fans feel,
Kind of. The story lays out how driven and smart and good with numbers she is, but it also spends some time focused on her as a foot-stomping cheerleader who loves her “PAWPAW.” So maybe this feature serves as a warning to Saints fans that once the 82-year-old Benson dies, she’s the one who’ll call the shots in New Orleans. (Or move them to a larger market.) Too young? Too Cameron Diaz-y? Oh, and former employee Mike Feder pretty much says he’s not a fan of her hands-on management style. “I know she’s intelligent, ” Feder says. “I just think she hadn’t figured out how to deal with people.” Incompetent people like Mike Feder, most likely, but it still should be noted that somebody doesn’t think too highly of her. This isn’t the first profile done of LeBlanc — Portfolio did a four-page spread on her two years ago about how she’s the one person who helped “save the Saints.” So watch out for her. Her closest peer responsibility-wise is Jed York, 28-year-old president of the San Francisco 49ers. Those two should get married! Rita Benson Leblanc Is Climbing The NFL Ladder NOLA
Her name is Rita Benson Leblanc. Granddaughter of Saints’ owner Tom Benson. At 31 she’s the VP of the Saints. But the Times-Picayune argues that her pedigree is only part of her success.
what do you think?How do you think this news about young will affect the rest of the team this season?
Discover great seating options, and great prices on baseball tickets - at TicketsNow! Going to a Major League game shouldn’t cost you a fortune, so shop and buy from fans and compare lots of different tickets, all guaranteed to be authentic and delivered in time for the game.
The Phillies were all but guaranteed to land the Greatest Pitcher Ever at some point this weekend, but Blue Jays’ GM J.P. Ricciardi’s now justifiably hard-balling. Impasse!
Plus, it’s starting to fluster J.A.(y) Happ, who seems destined to head to Toronto if the Phillies can manage to throw enough Future into the pot. Then ESPN’s A.J. Mass trots out this theory: the Phillies are awesomer than awesome right now and do not need Halladay to be awesomest. (I’m paraphrasing.) Mitch Williams is convinced the Phillies can repeat if they land Roy. The Phillies are reluctant to part with both Kyle Drabek and J.A. Happ. Take one, just not both they say, even though as Jayson Stark sagely points out, neither one of those guys will ever be Roy Halladay. Thank you, you hair-helmeted beacon of reason.
The worst thing the Phillies could do here is dick around too much and then end up overpaying for Cliff Lee, Zach Duke, or Jarrod Washburn. That would be disastrous. Oh, and whatever happened to Mike Grace?
.
I have always been a fan of Duke, I have to say, seeing news like this gives me mixed feelings.How do you think this news will affect the rest of the team this season?
Every day should be opening day when you open up your checkbook and see the logo of your favorite MLB team proudly displayed. All 30 teams available. Matching labels and cover are also available. These MLB checks are only $27.90 at DesignerChecks.com