MLB - 2010 Spring Training!

[Imran Siddiqui]

Why exactly would have Cashman have traded Joba and Cano for him? Did you see the scrubs the Mets sent to Minnesota for him (what a fleecing, even if there is a Tommy John)?

[Arrian]

The reported packages requested by Minny were Cano + Hughes or Joba (I can't remember which), or some other ridiculous Hughes + package.

Granted, this is heresay and who knows what the Twins would ultimately have accepted from the Yankees. However, given the packages I've seen discussed in the context of a possible Santana-to-the-Red-Sox trade (they were also loaded with talent, far exceeding what the Mets gave up), it makes me think the Twins had little intention of trading Johan within the AL.

My sarcastic comment was aimed at a certain contingent of Yankees fans who are ****ing idiots and castigated Cashman for not moving heaven and earth to get Santana.

-Arrian

[Imran Siddiqui]

Wasn't really sure until now how sorry the AL Central was. The Tampa Bay Rays, who are 10.5 games back in the AL East and 5 games back in the Wild Card, would LEAD the AL Central by 2 (granted the Rays are 70-58 right now, which is pretty good, but Texas in the AL West would lead by even more in the Central). They are the only division without a team with 74 wins (Detroit, leading the division has only 68).

[Guynemer]

There's always one division like that.

When the Cardinals won the Series a few years back they won the NL Central with 83-79.

[snoopy369]

As you know, wins in one division don't necessarily translate to wins in another division... but yes, the AL Central is terrible. DET is probably playing about to its talent, with some surprise young pitching that may or may not be overperforming; MIN is (as usual) far overperforming their talent, particularly with regards to their pitching; and the White Sox can't figure things out at all. CHW vs MIN is a pretty good example of the standard sabermetrics arguments; CHW give up too many outs, both with their hitting style (power) and their managing (Ozzie "Sacrifice Bunt" Guillen), while MIN has guys who can get on base and then moves them over and in.

I still wouldn't be terribly surprised to see either DET or CHW advance in the postseason, though this past week has changed that view a bit. Both have power hitters that can turn it on, and three very good pitchers (assuming Buehrle figures out whatever is wrong with his changeup). A lot of it has to do with who wins the wildcard; whoever does, that division winner faces the AL Central, and the Angels I suspect would lose a 5 game series with either team. The Yankees would certainly be favored to win, but their pitching has been so erratic that I wouldn't consider them a sure thing; though if Sergio Mitre can one-hit the Sox, perhaps that's not relevant

I've been thinking about what I'd like the White Sox to do over the offseason, and I think the answer is to let Dye and Thome go. If you can sign (or trade for) Carl Crawford, that would be the first option; but I'm not sure Reinsdorf will want to take on that contract for the necessary time. Option two is Coco Crisp, assuming he's returned to health; he'd probably take a one year contract for $8M or maybe even less. Option three is stick with Scott Podsednik and/or Kotsay (in LF/RF), somewhat of a white flag, but that might be the best choice at this point, particularly with Jordan Danks in the minors.

At second, there are a bunch of possibilities. Unless the Giants/Mariners let one of the ex-Pirates go, the most interesting players are Akinori Iwamura (Rays club option), who I think the Rays will keep (though if not, at $4-5 MM would be a steal), Orlando Hudson, who's probably going to cost a bit more and be fairly in demand (more like $7MM), and Felipe Lopez, who seems to have lost his speed but can still hit pretty well, and probably is in between ($6MM). I think I'd like to see the latter (Felipe Lopez), myself. Probably the best place to spend our money, as well, as there are quite a few talented 2Bs out there so they'll come at a bargain.

If we get one of those guys, either at CF/LF or at 2B, then we're probably done spending. However, if we don't, or if Reinsy decides to continue holding the pocketbook open, one position we haven't considered is 1B. Paul could move to part-time DH/1B, and someone like Nick Johnson or Adam Laroche could be signed. Both have a decent OBP (particularly Nick) and some left-handed power. Nick will probably cost $6-$7MM per, and Adam slightly less, $5MM per. Both are affordable, either in conjunction with a reasonably priced 2B or by themselves. If we don't resign one of these guys, we should resign Kotsay (probably $2-$3MM) and add an 'old DH' like Matsui ($7MM??), which I don't prefer (though if we can get Kotsay back, I'd like to, regardless).

So assuming we have $15MM to spend or so in free agency, which I think is about right if we let Dye, Thome, and of course Contreras go, the lineups could look something like this:

Crawford LF
Beckham 3B
Rios CF
Konerko 1B/DH
AJ C
Quentin RF
Kotsay DH/1B
Ramirez SS
Getz 2B

or

Felipe Lopez 2B
Beckham 3B
Rios RF
Johnson 1B
Konerko DH
AJ C
Quentin LF
Ramirez SS
Podsednik CF

With a bench of Nix or Getz, Kotsay, random backup C, and either an OF (particularly if we keep Getz) or a middle/corner IF (if we keep Nix). One option of course is both Nix and Getz; another is to bring up someone (Danks, Flowers, etc.)

I definitely like the latter option (Lopez/Johnson), as it gives us a good left handed bat along with a competent leadoff hitter, which we haven't had lately. Pods is getting old, but he's still playing well enough (though not really great for leadoff anymore); I'd rather not play him in center, but I think Quentin is just as scary in right (where he'd have to play if Rios plays CF). If Kenny can figure out a way to get the two, I think we'll be in a good position to win the Central next year, and if Peavy eventually comes back and is at least close to as good as he was in SD, we'll be pretty solid for the playoffs.

But as for this year... well, the fact that I'm thinking about next year should say something As long as we're within 6 of detroit by the time we face them for 6 of our last 9, we COULD win the central, but I'm not thinking it's likely at this point barring some sort of miracle.

[Imran Siddiqui]

the Angels I suspect would lose a 5 game series with either team.

The Angels are always so underrated . This year, though, the Angels are doing it with hitting rather than their usual combination of pitching and defense (yes, it is said that pitching wins championships, but you need to be able to hit a bit). And the top 2 pitchers for the Angels are pretty damned good (Weaver and Lackey).

Furthermore, in a 5 game series against the Yanks, you won't see Mitre. You'll see Sabathia, Burnett and either Pettite or Chamberlain. And, what is very important for the playoffs, their bullpen is top notch.

If you can sign (or trade for) Carl Crawford, that would be the first option; but I'm not sure Reinsdorf will want to take on that contract for the necessary time.

Also with the Rays getting rid of Kazmir's contract, I think they'll now keep Crawford.

someone like Nick Johnson or Adam Laroche could be signed

If those are the choices, I'd choose Nick Johnson 9 times out of 10. LaRoche is a good player to acquire at the deadline perhaps, but is incredibly streaky and drove Braves fans and then Pirates fans, and now Braves fans again crazy.

[snoopy369]

Umm, Sabathia's been fine but not WTFamazing (3.56/1.13), and Burnett's 4.10/1.38 is not particularly good. 3.95/1.24 (Floyd) and 3.82/1.31 (Danks) along with 3.89/1.23 (Buehrle) are quite a bit better. I'm not even going into the 3rd pitcher for the Yanks, both have worse numbers than Burnett. (And, I wasn't suggesting Mitre would be facing them - I was suggesting they could throw some guy off the street and shut out the sox.)

You're probably right about Crawford [though Kenny Williams could separate a bear from his honey]. Nick Johnson I certainly would prefer, though if he's unavailable Laroche would be of some value at least to me (as a lefty in a lineup that needs one).

Perhaps the good news about this losing streak is now they won't rush Peavy back... if we were within a few games, there would be the temptation to get him back in.

[SlowwHand]

Go Rangers. No one expected anything until next year; so no matter, all is well...for now.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Umm, Sabathia's been fine but not WTFamazing (3.56/1.13), and Burnett's 4.10/1.38 is not particularly good. 3.95/1.24 (Floyd) and 3.82/1.31 (Danks) along with 3.89/1.23 (Buehrle) are quite a bit better. I'm not even going into the 3rd pitcher for the Yanks, both have worse numbers than Burnett. (And, I wasn't suggesting Mitre would be facing them - I was suggesting they could throw some guy off the street and shut out the sox.)

Sabathia has been pretty good (he is 10th best in the American League in ERA+) and both Burnett and Pettite have been above average pitchers this year. Chamberlain has as well, though barely. Add to that monster of an offense (118 OPS+ as a team - 12 points above 2nd place in that department!)

[Arrian]

The hitting and bullpen would hopefully be the Yankees advantages vs. other teams. The Red Sox have a better 'pen (though the gap has closed quite a bit), the Angels can hit w/the Yanks, and most teams can match up with the Yankees starting pitching (which, beyond Sabathia, is merely ok).

Nice sweep of the White Sox to bounce back from losing 2 of 3 to the Rangers. Division lead holding, despite strong play from the Red Sox (who got 6 scoreless innings from Wakefield and then another 6 scoreless from Byrd, ffs!). Wakefield is apparently hurting still, though. Dunno what the story is on DiceK. Buccholtz continues his young pitcher with tremendous stuff adjusting to pitching in the AL thing (good start, beating, good start, beating, great start...). I'm still confident that the Sox are going to be the Wild Card.

-Arrian

[EPW]

SOB

Friendship or Betrayal From Inside the Lines?

By DAVID WALDSTEIN
The suspicions and resentment had built to such a degree that the manager was compelled to call a most unusual team meeting. It was the middle of July 2001 and the Oakland Athletics’ clubhouse was about to explode.
A series of events on the field led several players to believe that the star shortstop Miguel Tejada had been helping friends on opposing teams by tipping off pitches and by allowing balls they hit to get past him occasionally during games with lopsided scores.
No hard evidence has ever been produced, and to this day Tejada, now an All-Star with the Houston Astros, denies his teammates’ accusations, which have only recently been uncovered.
But Manager Art Howe, contrary to his laissez-faire style, was forced to address the issue. He spoke first on Tejada’s behalf, trying to quell the outrage. Then Jason Giambi, the unequivocal leader and biggest star on the team, laid out the players’ concerns.
“It really shocked me to the point of disbelief,” said Tim Hudson, then a young pitching star for the Athletics. “But I figured, if that’s an issue where we need to clear the air a bit, then we need to clear the air a little bit.”
Not surprisingly, several people who attended the meeting, in the A’s home clubhouse, described it as contentious and ugly. Frank Menechino, an A’s infielder at the time, said the veteran Ron Gant took control at the first hint that it might turn nasty.
“I think Ron Gant calmed it down before it snowballed into anything big,” said Menechino, now the hitting instructor for the Class AA Trenton Thunder. “Like: ‘Hey, man, we can’t worry about what the other teams are doing in this league. But we can’t pull the Dominican guys out of our team and suspect them of anything until we catch them.’ He basically calmed everything down. Everything was fine after that. I seriously can’t prove, say, yes or no, that guys were doing it. But who knows?”
Hudson called Tejada, a six-time All-Star, “a great teammate” and said he still found it impossible to believe that he would help the opposition.
Although rumors and whispers of tipping pitches circulate, proof is hard to come by. In her recent book, Selena Roberts cited unnamed Texas Rangers who accused Alex Rodriguez of tipping pitches when he was with the team, from 2001 to 2003. No one ever publicly backed their claims, and revelations of Rodriguez’s steroid use received more attention.
But to many players and people in baseball, the shadowy, illicit concept of tipping pitches or allowing batted balls to become hits is far worse than the use of performance-enhancing drugs because it casts doubt on the integrity of the game.
“If I knew someone was doing that, I would fight him right there on the field,” the veteran pitcher Livan Hernandez said.
As Hudson, now with the Atlanta Braves, said: “That’s the ultimate betrayal from a teammate. You hope it don’t happen. You hope that your sense of team with your players comes before any sort of friendship with somebody on another team. Winning of the game should come first and foremost. Does it go on? I would hope that it don’t. That’s not to say that it hasn’t happened. But who’s to know?”
In theory, pitch tipping would involve an infielder’s relaying signs to the batter. The fielder would expect the opposing player to reciprocate when he came to the plate. It is not believed to be a pervasive problem, but some people in baseball acknowledge it exists.
Mets third baseman Fernando Tatis said that he had never seen or heard of an actual case of pitch tipping or helping an opponent, but he added, “It happens.”
And after the A’s meeting, Menechino said he asked friends on other teams if they had ever heard of such a thing.
“There were a couple of teams that said, ‘Absolutely,’ ” he said.
What first raised suspicion among the 2001 A’s was an early May series in Toronto. Tejada and Blue Jays third baseman Tony Batista, friends from the Dominican Republic, each put up terrific numbers. In the three-game series, Batista went 6 for 13 with a home run and 5 runs batted in, and Tejada was 4 for 10 with 9 R.B.I., including a home run in each game.
More significant in the eyes of some of the players was an incident in the second game of the series. Tejada did not get to an easy ground ball Batista hit off reliever Mark Guthrie with the Athletics leading, 8-2. When the inning was over, A’s players fumed on the bench.
Tejada, now 35, said his teammates were skeptical because Batista dropped a foul pop-up he hit in the previous game.
“I would never do that,” Tejada said. “I want to win. If my brother was on the other team, I would never help him.”
Guthrie, now retired, remembered Batista’s hit and the meeting.
“It’s impossible to prove something like that,” he said. “So it’s not worth commenting on.”
Gord Ash, the Blue Jays’ general manager in 2001, said he did not recall any suspicions surrounding Batista, whom he released a month after the A’s series for financial reasons.
“You hear accusations about it on other clubs,” said Ash, now an assistant general manager with the Milwaukee Brewers. “Does it go on? I’m sure it does. But not that I remember with us.”
Tejada said he was not angry about the meeting because he felt it was just a matter of frustrated pitchers speaking from emotion, even though position players spoke as well. He said the incident was “a one-time thing” and had never come up again. But he has since had well-documented trouble off the field.
On Dec. 13, 2007, the Mitchell Report stated that Tejada had bought human growth hormone and steroids. Four months later, he was found to have lied about his age; he was two years older than the A’s thought he was when they originally signed him. And Tejada pleaded guilty this year to misleading Congress in 2005 about buying HGH from an Oakland teammate.
If some Athletics were mildly suspicious after the 2001 series in Toronto, their concern escalated during interleague play on July 14. Tejada failed to catch what appeared to some as a soft line drive off the bat of Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Adrian Beltre in a 15-inning, 5-3 loss. Because A’s players had heard Beltre was a teammate of Tejada’s in the Dominican Winter League, their antennae went up again, and within a few days the meeting was arranged.
Johnny Damon, who played for the Athletics then, absolved Tejada by saying observant opponents had been interpreting Tejada’s inadvertent cues.
“Miggy was telling guys there was no way he would be doing it,” Damon said. “I think what we concluded was that the hitters were seeing him move on certain pitches. That happens, you’ll see a young player move closer to the hole on a fastball away, you’ll see him creep a little toward the hole. I think that’s what it all came down to, Miggy not being able to hide the extra steps. But it seemed like all the Dominican guys were killing us.”
When Howe defended Tejada by saying that he had pride and wanted to go home in the off-season and tell his friends how well he played, an outraged Menechino stood up.
“What’s that got to do with it, Art?” Menechino recalled saying. “The rest of us want to be able to tell people that, too.”
At the time of the meeting, the Athletics were floundering around .500, playing well below their talent level. From that point forward, they went on a tear, winning three-quarters of their remaining games to earn a playoff spot. A long, tumultuous season for Tejada and the A’s ended when they lost their first-round series to the Yankees in five hard-fought games. The next year, he was named the American League’s most valuable player.
“Tejada is a very proud baseball player and Tejada wanted to win,” Menechino said. “That I know for sure. But the only way to get to Tejada was through his teammates. He was pampered there, but when his teammates got on him, he took it to heart.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/30/sports/baseball/30pitch.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print

[snoopy369]

I have to say I don't think there's any remotely credible evidence of Tejada tipping pitches or otherwise not playing hard... or are you calling the reporter an SOB?

[EPW]

I don't need proof

[snoopy369]

What confuses me even more is that the article you posted seems relatively pro-Tejada, in that it posts that the folks accused him of it, and their facts, but posts more stuff suggesting he didn't do anything (as I think). Plenty of pitchers tip their pitches, and it's certainly unintentional; it wouldn't shock me to learn he moved to better fielding positions based on the pitch [as folks like, for example, DEREK JETER do, albeit with a veteran's know-how to avoid letting the batter know],

[EPW]

Tejada is an established liar. I'm presuming guilt till he's proven innocent.