MLB - 2008 Season

[SlowwHand]

Rangers ballpark is nice.

[Ninot]

I want to kick down the Olympic Stadium cinderblock by cinderblock

[Imran Siddiqui]

This is a wierd season. Here is my All-Star ballot:

AL:

First Base: Morneau, J., MIN
Second Base: Kinsler, I., TEX
Third Base: Rodriguez, A., NYY
Shortstop: Young, M., TEX
Catcher: Mauer, J., MIN
Outfielder: Bradley, M., TEX
Outfielder: Hamilton, J., TEX
Outfielder: Upton, B., TB
Designated Hitter: Matsui, H., NYY
Write-in:

NL:

First Base: Berkman, L., HOU
Second Base: Utley, C., PHI
Third Base: Jones, C., ATL
Shortstop: Ramirez, H., FLA
Catcher: McCann, B., ATL
Outfielder: Burrell, P., PHI
Outfielder: Ludwick, R., STL
Outfielder: McLouth, N., PIT
Write-in:

---

Thoughts: AL SS, which used to be a strength is HORRIBLE! Barely any have over 100 OPS+, not even Jeter. Texas dominated my AL lineup... which shows how bad their pitching actually is when they are hovering around .500 with all those amazing hitters.

NL 1B is ridiculously loaded. I mean, Adrian Gonzalez, who finishes behind Berkman and Pujols would have started for my AL team. And how crazy in the NL OF? Burrell, Ludwick, and McLouth?! But yet they all deserve and are all tattooing the ball. I hope McLouth gets to play... though I fear that the more well known Jason Bay, who is also having a great season will end up being the Pirates' rep.

[SlowwHand]

Thoughts: AL SS, which used to be a strength is HORRIBLE! Barely any have over 100 OPS+, not even Jeter. Texas dominated my AL lineup... which shows how bad their pitching actually is when they are hovering around .500 with all those amazing hitters.

The story of a Ranger fan's life.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Here is the question for Rangers fans. Josh Hamilton may be an all-star for the next 10 years. To get him, you gave up Edinson Volquez, who may be the starter of this AS game. Do you reverse the trade?

On first glance it seems obvious, but I'm curious.

[snoopy369]

Long term hitting is much more assured than long term pitching, so you certainly do the trade.

Most people i've seen have described that trade as a win-win, and I think I have to agree.

[EPW]

Except Texas has horrendous pitching

[snoopy369]

Yes, but they can't realistically have expected to win this year or even next year. They have to be looking at least medium term if not long term, and hitting is the more realistically projectable characteristic over the long term.

You can always buy pitching, assuming your GM has half of a brain and a fat wallet, or stock up in the minors and wait for a year where lots of good young pitchers come out at the same time.

[Fistandantilus]

Well, but if there is a time you have to sacrifice some hitting to get pitching is now.

As of today the Rangers:
394 runs scored = first in the majors
414 runs allowed = last in the majors

Some balance is needed methinks.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Yeah, if I was Texas, I think I may have wanted that back, even though Hamilton is one of the best players in baseball now and for the foreseeable future. Hamilton is also 27 and Volquez is 24. Could have been nice for the future, but, yes, pitching prospects have FAR more risk associated with them (throwing out an arm and the career may be over in a year).

But yeah, it does turn out to be somewhat of a win-win because both players will be all stars for years to come it seems like.

Interestingly enough Volquez was in the Texas minor league system with John Danks, who the Rangers dealt to the White Sox for Brandon McCarthey (which seems like a very bad deal).

[snoopy369]

I am certainly very happy with the Danks deal

[SlowwHand]

Originally posted by snoopy369
Long term hitting is much more assured than long term pitching, so you certainly do the trade.

Most people i've seen have described that trade as a win-win, and I think I have to agree.

One would think so, and maybe it IS so; but you cite a particular instance, not time and again.

[Arrian]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
If anyone cares about this sport anymore... Willie Randolph got fired by the Mets. About time, but the way they went about it was just moronic. Omar Minaya needs to go next.

I have no idea why Rick Peterson was fired though.

The team's weaknesses are primarily Omar's fault anyway. I haven't been following it all that closely, but it strikes me as somewhat similar to what Joe Torre went through with the Yankees. When he had great teams, he was built up as this great manager, and it seemed like every move he made was genius. When the team had real flaws, he was exposed as being tactically mediocre (while still great w/the media and usually good with players, ARod notwithstanding). Similar with Willie, minus the 4 championships and the media skill. Um, yeah.

Anyway, losing your ace pitcher for the season (or rather his ~18 remaining starts) sucks. Big time.

-Arrian

[Arrian]

Originally posted by Guynemer
For the record, whoever it was that I laughed at for predicted the ChiSox would take the AL Central... mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.

A lot of people, myself included, may have egg on their faces b/c of the White Sox. I didn't think the Tigers would be the best team evar, but I thought they'd be reasonably good, despite my concerns about their pitching. Ditto the Indians, in the reverse. And I thought the ChiSox would suck.

As it turns out, a bunch of their younger guys have (thus far, anyway) made leaps forward and they're looking like a much better team than most of us figured they would be. There are, of course, quite a few games left to be played. The White Sox could still fail to win the division, though they will almost assuredly win more games than I figured they would.

-Arrian

[Arrian]

Originally posted by SlowwHand


One would think so, and maybe it IS so; but you cite a particular instance, not time and again.

Hitting is easier to predict/project than pitching. Pitchers are also more injury-prone (ultimately, that might be most of the reason why they are so hard to predict). So many teams figure you develop hitting and you trade for/buy established pitchers. I'm not saying that's the right way to go... currently my team is trying to develop a slew of young pitchers, and I fervently hope the strategy works. But as we've seen this year, young pitchers are risky as all hell. Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy were both very good prospects (Hughes more than Kennedy), and they both were awful, then got hurt. Clay Buccholz up in Boston put up a ~5.5 ERA and then went on the DL. Same guy who threw a no-no last year. Joba is doing well so far, but that just means that so far this year, the Yanks are 1 for 3 with young pitchers (and the 2 that failed so far have failed miserably, to the tune of a ~9 era, then injuries).

This Volquez kid could blow out his arm in his next start and never be the same, or he could struggle next year for no apparent reason (Hughes and Kennedy were pretty good last season, in limited duty, before getting smacked around this year. Ditto Buccholz, to a lesser extent). Injuries are a risk for hitters too, of course, but pitchers are worse.

-Arrian