Reports have leaked out of the spring training site of the Tampa Bay Rays recently, suggesting that the club may be pursuing free-agent slugger Barry Bonds. There has been no formal talk between the two sides, but Rays management has confirmed that they tossed the idea around a little bit. After all, how could they not?
This is one of those scenarios where it is a huge risk, huge reward type thing. There are some reasons to be excited, if you are Tampa Bay, by adding the all-time homerun king to your lineup. And, of course, there are plenty of reasons to be wary when handling a personality like Barry Bonds, baggage and all.
The big deal-breaker at this point is the fact that Barry Bonds is still deep in his steroid mess and is not out of the woods yet on those perjury charges. How can a team bring a guy, who is in the midst of an investigation with the federal government, into a clubhouse with a core of players who are still young and have not established themselves, let alone all of the kids that are in big league camp for the first time and are close to being big-league-ready?
That seems like the million dollar question. And, really, at this point, they can't. There is a big part of me that wants to say don't even give this a second thought because the young guys just need a clean, fun atmosphere to get to the big leagues and allow their talent to take over. The Rays have arguably the best farm system in the game with a wealth of new players that could be breaking on to the scene for the next three seasons.
The talent is starting to come around for this ballclub, to the point where they may even be relevant in the American League East talk. But not quite yet. All of the great, young players that are being assembled in that clubhouse need some time to grow and make adjustments when they struggle.
Team chemistry is pivotal in a situation like this because, with so much talent, albeit unproven, there really is no telling what can happen when all of that talent is put together properly to devise the perfect formula. If the Rays find a way to gel around a nucleus of players no older than 26, they just may explode.
In that regard, Barry can't be brought into the mix. The Rays do not need a horde of media following them around and asking Bonds a bottomless amount of questions regarding steroids and the scandal he is involved in. It is cliche to say that the negative attention will be a disruption to the team, but it is true and there is no getting around it. It is like trying to deny that 30-some-odd spring training games is way too many for Major League Baseball. Sure, it is debatable, I'll give you that, but in the end the answer is fairly obvious.
But what if, just what if, Barry is brought in to solidify a lineup that is built around Carl Crawford, B.J. Upton, and Evan Longoria, and he plays the role of mentor and savvy veteran? There is no doubt that Bonds is a rich source of baseball knowledge that is waiting to be tapped into, but only when Bonds feels like welcoming visitors.
Nobody questions what Greg Maddux has done for the careers of Derek Lowe, Brady Penny, Jake Peavy, and Chris Young. The time that Maddux spent at the ballpark, rubbing his wisdom off on those guys, is invaluable. I can potentially see that sort of thing coming together in Tampa if all stars align right.
Barry Bonds can still rake; that statement is irrefutable. As a full-time DH, I don't see it unreasonable to expect Bonds to hit 30 homers. He is still that type of player. Bonds' bat would go a long way towards closing the gap between Tampa Bay's offense and the offenses of the AL East powers Boston and New York. And lets not forget to mention the possible impact of what lies just ahead in Bonds' future. You think Bonds is a dangerous hitter now? How dangerous is an extra-motivated Bonds then? Let me remind you, Bonds is 60 hits away from 3,000 for his career, and he undoubtedly wants the chance to make a run at that number.
Predictably, the caveat of all of this is price. What will Bonds and his agent agree to sign for? This number will be the driving force between what happens from now until Opening Day, and possibly beyond. If Bonds is asking for upwards of $8-10 million, then the Rays should just walk away and say thanks, but no thanks.
But if Bonds comes out and asks for a deal that has a low guaranteed salary, and is loaded with performance bonuses, the bait may be strong enough to force the Rays to bite. This is a tough situation due to the fact that this transaction could go horribly wrong, and then you risk interrupting the development of a group of talented prospects. But what keeps you peeking at the aged slugger is the reality that Bonds is a big-time player who would love to go into Fenway and Yankee Stadium and wreak havoc. If the dollars are right, Tampa may pull the trigger. This is the type of thing that could make the 2008 Rays the 2007 Rockies.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Silent Treatment
Most of the regulars started to mingle in to spring trianing camps in Florida and Arizona on Tuesday, with sights set on Wednesday as the official day for position players to report, with the first full-team workout coming a few days after that. As Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez joined the Yankee camp, and David Ortiz and Mike Lowell joined the Red Sox camp, the beef of spring training is starting to emerge, and by next week, we will no longer be idling in the commencement of spring.
But even with eyes shifting towards the batting cages as the hitters get an early start on working the kinks out of their swings, there are still some of the dreaded questions to be answered in this steroid scandal. Baseball is not going to be out of the woods for quite a while when it comes to steroids and the Steroid Era, but that doesn't mean that fans and media alike cannot take measured steps towards focusing most of the energy back on to the game itself.
But here we were on Tuesday, with Miguel Tejada reporting to Astros camp and Jose Guillen signing in with Kansas City and we were not talking about the contributions to their new teams or how thir bodies feel as both players are well into their playing days. Of course, there is some baggage that needs to be dealt with and we won't be able to even think about baseball until it is over.
The problem is that it may be a little while before the air is cleared. Tejada made it clear that he is in no mood to discuss his involvement with the Mitchell Report, as his situation is currently under investigtion and he has not been permitted by his lawyers to speak publicly.
That is fine and there is no rush for him to step to the podium and pull an Andy Pettitte, but that is certainly what will be expected from him as soon as this investigation is over. Hopefully, for the Astros and Tejada, this investigation wraps up before the spring is over so this cloud is not hanging over Houston on Opening Day.
Tejada couldn't have been more adamant about his desire to focus solely on baseball at this point and time. Alrigt, Miguel, let's see what 2008 holds for you. Tejada, coming off of wrist surgery in 2007, looks ready to get back to his old self, playing every single day and hitting in the middle of some order, somewhere. Many critics in Baltimore thought Tejada was no quicker than your average national monument at short, but Tejada himself seems determined to prove those doubters wrong.
Houston is certainly looking at him to be their shortstop, as they let Adam Everett go after last season, and they will also be calling on the slugger to take his role behind Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee in the launching pad that is Minute Maid Park. I believe Tejada can be very productive in Houston, mainly because of the huge advantage he gets from the switch in ballparks alone. Houston has spacious outfield gaps that will invite plenty of extra-basehits, as well as the short wall in left field that should help righthanded hitters.
Guillen, on the other hand, will have to answer questions about his 15 day suspension for violating baseball's drug policy, which came down immediately after signing a three-year deal with the Royals. Guillen remained mum about the topic as he has appealed his suspension and is awaiting the decision, which is expected to come sometime before the end of spring training.
It wasn't all about drama in Steroidville on Tuesday, though, as multiple stars reported to camp early and began their workouts a day before they were scheduled to be there. The arrival of Ken Griffey Jr. was a nice surprise for the Reds and new manager Dusty Baker, as Griffey comes to camp a healthy man without any doctor visits to speak of over the offseason.
Griffey battled a broken wrist last year which was caused by a freak accident at his home; just another injury on what seems to be a plagued last five years for the perennial All-Star. With that news behind him, Griffey is eager to get the season under way and continue his ascent baseball's all-time homerun list. What a site it would be this season to see Griffey mentoring the budding superstar that is Jay Bruce this year as the Reds make a run at the NL Central. Finally, the real baseball talk of spring is here.
But even with eyes shifting towards the batting cages as the hitters get an early start on working the kinks out of their swings, there are still some of the dreaded questions to be answered in this steroid scandal. Baseball is not going to be out of the woods for quite a while when it comes to steroids and the Steroid Era, but that doesn't mean that fans and media alike cannot take measured steps towards focusing most of the energy back on to the game itself.
But here we were on Tuesday, with Miguel Tejada reporting to Astros camp and Jose Guillen signing in with Kansas City and we were not talking about the contributions to their new teams or how thir bodies feel as both players are well into their playing days. Of course, there is some baggage that needs to be dealt with and we won't be able to even think about baseball until it is over.
The problem is that it may be a little while before the air is cleared. Tejada made it clear that he is in no mood to discuss his involvement with the Mitchell Report, as his situation is currently under investigtion and he has not been permitted by his lawyers to speak publicly.
That is fine and there is no rush for him to step to the podium and pull an Andy Pettitte, but that is certainly what will be expected from him as soon as this investigation is over. Hopefully, for the Astros and Tejada, this investigation wraps up before the spring is over so this cloud is not hanging over Houston on Opening Day.
Tejada couldn't have been more adamant about his desire to focus solely on baseball at this point and time. Alrigt, Miguel, let's see what 2008 holds for you. Tejada, coming off of wrist surgery in 2007, looks ready to get back to his old self, playing every single day and hitting in the middle of some order, somewhere. Many critics in Baltimore thought Tejada was no quicker than your average national monument at short, but Tejada himself seems determined to prove those doubters wrong.
Houston is certainly looking at him to be their shortstop, as they let Adam Everett go after last season, and they will also be calling on the slugger to take his role behind Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee in the launching pad that is Minute Maid Park. I believe Tejada can be very productive in Houston, mainly because of the huge advantage he gets from the switch in ballparks alone. Houston has spacious outfield gaps that will invite plenty of extra-basehits, as well as the short wall in left field that should help righthanded hitters.
Guillen, on the other hand, will have to answer questions about his 15 day suspension for violating baseball's drug policy, which came down immediately after signing a three-year deal with the Royals. Guillen remained mum about the topic as he has appealed his suspension and is awaiting the decision, which is expected to come sometime before the end of spring training.
It wasn't all about drama in Steroidville on Tuesday, though, as multiple stars reported to camp early and began their workouts a day before they were scheduled to be there. The arrival of Ken Griffey Jr. was a nice surprise for the Reds and new manager Dusty Baker, as Griffey comes to camp a healthy man without any doctor visits to speak of over the offseason.
Griffey battled a broken wrist last year which was caused by a freak accident at his home; just another injury on what seems to be a plagued last five years for the perennial All-Star. With that news behind him, Griffey is eager to get the season under way and continue his ascent baseball's all-time homerun list. What a site it would be this season to see Griffey mentoring the budding superstar that is Jay Bruce this year as the Reds make a run at the NL Central. Finally, the real baseball talk of spring is here.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Unknown quantities
Sunday marked an important day for two clubs in particular, as progress was made on the returns of Pedro Martinez and Mark Prior. Both righthanders are working their way back from injuries, although Pedro is getting himself in shape after shoulder trouble last year, and Prior is basically coming back from the dead.
The New York Mets couldn't have been happier with the news that came out of their spring training ballpark on Sunday. Martinez showed up for a light workout and was planning on throwing on flat ground to stretch his arm out and see how it felt, entering the first full week of training camp. After feeling so good, Martinez took it to the mound to give it a try.
No, there were no 97 mph fastballs from Pedro's days in Boston, but there also weren't any grabbings of the shoulder and wiggling of the arm, which was the best sign the Mets brass could have been hoping for. According to Pedro, the session went "very, very well", and he is further along at this point in his recovery then he expected to be.
So how big was this side session on Sunday in terms of the Mets outlook on the 2008 season? Tough to tell. There will be no real signs until a couple months into the season when Pedro has had a handful of starts and, hopefully, is pitching pain free.
The New York Mets needed Johan Santana so bad, it was palpable. There is no question in anyone's mind of how badly they needed that bonafide ace to lead their young staff. With the addition of Santana, the Mets are arguably the best team in the National League, and the frontrunner to win the NL East.
What was inconspicuous about the whole winter is how much the Mets actually need Pedro to come back, at full strength. Pedro is no longer the guy that can carry the brunt of the workload, but he definitely needs to be Santana's complement if New York is going to make a deep run in the playoffs. Martinez still has the big stage mentality, and there is no bigger stage than New York. Without Pedro, the Mets could be merely good. With a healthy Pedro, there is no telling what may come out of the National League East this summer.
In Peoria, Arizona, Mark Prior made his first trip back to the mound after missing last season with shoulder surgery. Prior, who signed a one-year deal with the Padres this offseason, threw 31 pitches in his first bullpen of the spring and reported that there was absolutely no discomfort in his arm and he is ready to continue forward with his rehab.
I am not even sure what to make of Prior at this point, and I don't think San Diego is either. Prior is like finding $100 in the back pocket of your jeans after they have gone through the wash. The return could be nothing short of spectacular, but if the whole thing is a bust, well it is not that big of a deal anyways.
There is so much speculation regarding Prior, let alone his abysmal medical history, that there should be a "Speak With Caution" sign attached to his name whenever he is written about or mentioned in terms of having an impact on a big league season. The problem is that there still is so much potential in that arm that it is hard not to be excited about what could possibly come together if he stumbled upon a clean bill of health in the coming year.
As a pure baseball fan, I am pulling for Prior in the same way I was pulling for Josh Hamilton last year. I cannot even fathom what it feels like to go from one of the brightest, most heralded pitching prospects in the history of the game, to a walking hospital visit and a draft day bust, in the span of a couple of years. That is a type of pain that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy, let alone a kid coming out of college with the potential to make such a momentous impact on baseball.
With that being said, it is going to be interesting to see how Prior does when he makes his debut for San Diego this season, which is expected to be somewhere around June. In the event that Prior returns fully healthy and has all of his stuff back, this makes San Diego the team to beat in the ever-crowded National League West.
Picking up a healthy Mark Prior is like coming across an ace in the bargain basket and renting him out for a season and one shot at a World Series title. Prior has the stuff to bump Chris Young back into a more comfortable third-starter spot in the rotation, leaving Prior pitching right behind ace Jake Peavy. With that ballpark, this rotation could get awfully scary if this guy can make a full return to baseball and leave his arm troubles in the past. There may be no greater story in baseball this year if this can all come true. I sure hope so.
The New York Mets couldn't have been happier with the news that came out of their spring training ballpark on Sunday. Martinez showed up for a light workout and was planning on throwing on flat ground to stretch his arm out and see how it felt, entering the first full week of training camp. After feeling so good, Martinez took it to the mound to give it a try.
No, there were no 97 mph fastballs from Pedro's days in Boston, but there also weren't any grabbings of the shoulder and wiggling of the arm, which was the best sign the Mets brass could have been hoping for. According to Pedro, the session went "very, very well", and he is further along at this point in his recovery then he expected to be.
So how big was this side session on Sunday in terms of the Mets outlook on the 2008 season? Tough to tell. There will be no real signs until a couple months into the season when Pedro has had a handful of starts and, hopefully, is pitching pain free.
The New York Mets needed Johan Santana so bad, it was palpable. There is no question in anyone's mind of how badly they needed that bonafide ace to lead their young staff. With the addition of Santana, the Mets are arguably the best team in the National League, and the frontrunner to win the NL East.
What was inconspicuous about the whole winter is how much the Mets actually need Pedro to come back, at full strength. Pedro is no longer the guy that can carry the brunt of the workload, but he definitely needs to be Santana's complement if New York is going to make a deep run in the playoffs. Martinez still has the big stage mentality, and there is no bigger stage than New York. Without Pedro, the Mets could be merely good. With a healthy Pedro, there is no telling what may come out of the National League East this summer.
In Peoria, Arizona, Mark Prior made his first trip back to the mound after missing last season with shoulder surgery. Prior, who signed a one-year deal with the Padres this offseason, threw 31 pitches in his first bullpen of the spring and reported that there was absolutely no discomfort in his arm and he is ready to continue forward with his rehab.
I am not even sure what to make of Prior at this point, and I don't think San Diego is either. Prior is like finding $100 in the back pocket of your jeans after they have gone through the wash. The return could be nothing short of spectacular, but if the whole thing is a bust, well it is not that big of a deal anyways.
There is so much speculation regarding Prior, let alone his abysmal medical history, that there should be a "Speak With Caution" sign attached to his name whenever he is written about or mentioned in terms of having an impact on a big league season. The problem is that there still is so much potential in that arm that it is hard not to be excited about what could possibly come together if he stumbled upon a clean bill of health in the coming year.
As a pure baseball fan, I am pulling for Prior in the same way I was pulling for Josh Hamilton last year. I cannot even fathom what it feels like to go from one of the brightest, most heralded pitching prospects in the history of the game, to a walking hospital visit and a draft day bust, in the span of a couple of years. That is a type of pain that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy, let alone a kid coming out of college with the potential to make such a momentous impact on baseball.
With that being said, it is going to be interesting to see how Prior does when he makes his debut for San Diego this season, which is expected to be somewhere around June. In the event that Prior returns fully healthy and has all of his stuff back, this makes San Diego the team to beat in the ever-crowded National League West.
Picking up a healthy Mark Prior is like coming across an ace in the bargain basket and renting him out for a season and one shot at a World Series title. Prior has the stuff to bump Chris Young back into a more comfortable third-starter spot in the rotation, leaving Prior pitching right behind ace Jake Peavy. With that ballpark, this rotation could get awfully scary if this guy can make a full return to baseball and leave his arm troubles in the past. There may be no greater story in baseball this year if this can all come true. I sure hope so.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Papelbon marks Sox as team to beat
With Friday being the first official day of spring workouts for pitchers and catchers, throngs of media and fans came out to ballparks in Florida and Arizona to watch their favorite pitchers throw bullpens and catchers work on their skills. The first week is for the pitchers to get some time off the mound before the regulars come in and start taking hacks off of the staff.
Getting their feet wet isn't the only thing pitchers do during the first week, apparently. Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon made his first appearance of the spring and boldly predicted that Boston is the team to beat in 2008. The fun-loving closer thinks that it is absolutely possible for the Red Sox to repeat.
These types of predictions usually can be labeled as hot air as they only serve to create a three day buzz around the league. But you know what? Jonathan Papelbon is absolutely right about the comments he made on Friday.
"If we stay healthy, I am not sure who can compete with us", Papelbon said.
There is a reason why the baseball season is so long and why the games are played out, because you can have teams like the Colorado Rockies coming out of nowhere to shock the country and make it into the World Series. That is what is great about baseball; anything can happen on any day.
As powerful as the New York Yankees seem to be every year, there just really isn't any other team in all of baseball that is as good , top to bottom, as Boston is. Nobody has the complete lineup that the Red Sox have, and no other club has as much potential in their starting rotation as the Red Sox. Oh yeah, not to mention they have an All-Star set-up man and an animal for a closer at the back end of the bullpen.
Boston's rotation has already taken what appears to be a hit when it was discovered that Curt Schilling is going to miss a substantial part, if not all, of the season with shoulder problems. Schilling is a veteran force in a rotation that consists of a bunch of semi-proven pitchers, Josh Beckett notwithstanding, and he finds a way to pitch quite good in the postseason.
That said, I am not exactly sure if this injury really is a hit to their rotation. It could be a blessing in disguise, depending on what Clay Buchholz can give them. At this point in his career, Schilling is just an average major league pitcher with above-average savvy. Buchholz has so much potential oozing out of his right arm, it's disgusting. It is very possible that Buchholz could be at least an average starter, and he of course has the potential to turn in an outstanding season, which would certainly make the Red Sox a whole lot to handle.
Even if Josh Beckett comes back to earth after his amazing, historic 2007 postseason, he will still be one of the top-five pitchers in all of baseball, and he will be a load every fifth day. Jon Lester is an intriguing kid who came up big in Game 4 of the World Series for the Red Sox after returning from his battle with cancer. The kid was such a feel-good story that it was hard not to root for the Red Sox and Lester even if you are not a Boston fan.
With that much character and talent, Lester could be quite a force in his first full major league season. The southpaw is certainly talented enough to be a middle-of-the-rotation starter, behind Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka. Matsuzaka turned in a solid season in 2007 after adapting to life in America and is poised for a Cy Young-claiber 2008. I am not sure there is any club, not the Mets or Diamondbacks or Mariners, who may have as impressive a 1-2 punch as the Red Sox. Throw in Papelbon for 45 saves and there is some high-octane arsenals coming the opponent's way this season.
This is all being said without even mentioning the offense. "Big Papi" David Ortiz is back to hold down the DH role, given his knee holds up and doesn't give him fits, and Manny Ramirez is going to be, well, Manny. Throw in role players such as Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis and catalysts like Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, and this Red Sox team may compete with the Detroit Tigers for the best offense in baseball come summer time.
This talk is all fun and games since it isn't even March and these pitchers are just back to the fields, stretching out their muscles for the first time in 2008. There are many PFP drills to be run and plenty of bullpens to be thrown before we even get to Opening Day, when the real long haul begins. But assuming everything runs its course, I have no problems with what Jonathan Papelbon blurted on this sunny, Florida afternoon. After all, is there anyone who would disagree with him?
Getting their feet wet isn't the only thing pitchers do during the first week, apparently. Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon made his first appearance of the spring and boldly predicted that Boston is the team to beat in 2008. The fun-loving closer thinks that it is absolutely possible for the Red Sox to repeat.
These types of predictions usually can be labeled as hot air as they only serve to create a three day buzz around the league. But you know what? Jonathan Papelbon is absolutely right about the comments he made on Friday.
"If we stay healthy, I am not sure who can compete with us", Papelbon said.
There is a reason why the baseball season is so long and why the games are played out, because you can have teams like the Colorado Rockies coming out of nowhere to shock the country and make it into the World Series. That is what is great about baseball; anything can happen on any day.
As powerful as the New York Yankees seem to be every year, there just really isn't any other team in all of baseball that is as good , top to bottom, as Boston is. Nobody has the complete lineup that the Red Sox have, and no other club has as much potential in their starting rotation as the Red Sox. Oh yeah, not to mention they have an All-Star set-up man and an animal for a closer at the back end of the bullpen.
Boston's rotation has already taken what appears to be a hit when it was discovered that Curt Schilling is going to miss a substantial part, if not all, of the season with shoulder problems. Schilling is a veteran force in a rotation that consists of a bunch of semi-proven pitchers, Josh Beckett notwithstanding, and he finds a way to pitch quite good in the postseason.
That said, I am not exactly sure if this injury really is a hit to their rotation. It could be a blessing in disguise, depending on what Clay Buchholz can give them. At this point in his career, Schilling is just an average major league pitcher with above-average savvy. Buchholz has so much potential oozing out of his right arm, it's disgusting. It is very possible that Buchholz could be at least an average starter, and he of course has the potential to turn in an outstanding season, which would certainly make the Red Sox a whole lot to handle.
Even if Josh Beckett comes back to earth after his amazing, historic 2007 postseason, he will still be one of the top-five pitchers in all of baseball, and he will be a load every fifth day. Jon Lester is an intriguing kid who came up big in Game 4 of the World Series for the Red Sox after returning from his battle with cancer. The kid was such a feel-good story that it was hard not to root for the Red Sox and Lester even if you are not a Boston fan.
With that much character and talent, Lester could be quite a force in his first full major league season. The southpaw is certainly talented enough to be a middle-of-the-rotation starter, behind Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka. Matsuzaka turned in a solid season in 2007 after adapting to life in America and is poised for a Cy Young-claiber 2008. I am not sure there is any club, not the Mets or Diamondbacks or Mariners, who may have as impressive a 1-2 punch as the Red Sox. Throw in Papelbon for 45 saves and there is some high-octane arsenals coming the opponent's way this season.
This is all being said without even mentioning the offense. "Big Papi" David Ortiz is back to hold down the DH role, given his knee holds up and doesn't give him fits, and Manny Ramirez is going to be, well, Manny. Throw in role players such as Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis and catalysts like Jacoby Ellsbury and Dustin Pedroia, and this Red Sox team may compete with the Detroit Tigers for the best offense in baseball come summer time.
This talk is all fun and games since it isn't even March and these pitchers are just back to the fields, stretching out their muscles for the first time in 2008. There are many PFP drills to be run and plenty of bullpens to be thrown before we even get to Opening Day, when the real long haul begins. But assuming everything runs its course, I have no problems with what Jonathan Papelbon blurted on this sunny, Florida afternoon. After all, is there anyone who would disagree with him?
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Joba still on the leash
Joba Chamberlain exploded onto the scene late last year, and quickly marked himself as one of the top minor league prospects in baseball. Chamberlain, a starter in college and in the minor leagues, was inserted into the set-up role for the Yankees to help bridge the gap to Mariano Rivera, given the rather weak New York bullpen. After allowing one earned run and striking out 34 batters in 24 innings, Joba became the lovable the youngster that was lifted up by passionate fans who fill Yankee Stadium each season.
I cannot remember a time in New York, before Joba, where there was any anticipated event that rivaled the ninth inning. The ninth inning in The Bronx is beloved because that is when the closer of all closers, at least in the eyes of Yankee diehards, comes in to pitch his inning and inflict torturous amounts of pain and helplessness onto his opponent. That all changed when this Nebraska dandy entered the equation.
It is not as if Rivera's entrance doesn't hold any weight anymore, because it certainly does, as seen and felt by the unmistaken buzz that fills the stadium when "Enter Sandman" blasts through the stadium speakers. But Chamberlain's presence made the eigth inning just as fun to watch, and eventually, more electric to witness. In the first few outings of Joba's career, it resembled the rather unknown band who opens for the muscial legend, and leaves a pleasant feelign of surprise in all of those at the concert.
Now Yankee fans aren't treated to a single concert, but precisely a festival of baseball's best tunes. Going to a Yankee game an staying for the entire duration of the contest is like theater hopping on a summer day. Two or three shows for the price of one. It is an absolute win-win scenario for New Yorkers, and this is without calculating the effects of witnessing Alex Rodriguez hit. Let alone simply feeling the magnitude of Derek Jeter's on-field persona.
After Chamberlain took to the bullpen role and dominated with his high-octane fastball and mordant slider, I wondered if we were witnessing another Jonathan Papelbon situation, where the once-heralded starter turns out to be so good in the bullpen that he never goes back to the rotation. This would of been a much more plausible scenario had the Yankees not resigned Rivera to a three year deal.
Nonetheless, to have a great 1-2 punch at the back of the bullpen is a great commodity that is capable of pushing teams over the hump, rather than experiencing an excrutiating first-round exit in the postseason. But with the great Mo Rivera back, how can you not put an arm with that much power into the rotation where his value is exponentially greater?
Well, it appears as if the Yankees brass has made their decision on how they will handle the situation going into spring training. The Yankees released a report saying that Chamberlain will open the season as the set-up man and then will will have a short stint in the minors around June to stretch himself out, with a debut in the New York rotation set for after the All-Star break.
This plan was devised in an effort to continue to limit the number of innings that Chamberlain throws in the early years of his career, and it also, to some degree, helps clear up the situation regarding the surplus of starting pitchers they have. I think they Yankees are trying to be smart about the way they develop Joba, with the emphasis on decreasing the risk of injury as much as possible.
I like the way this plan affects the Yankees roster, because it seems like a suitable way to get as much out of the arms at hand as possible. I do not like, however, the reigns that are being put on Joba. I understand trying to limit young pitchers' workloads, and increase them slowly over time. But this is professional baseball and these guys train themselves year around to be strong and throw a lot of ptiches. It is their job to be able to take the ball and compete for a long season.
With that said, I can't knock any organization for taking this approach because of the financial implications. The Yankees have a lot of money, and a large part of their future success, invested in Chamberlain and they are going to protect that as best as they can given their medical research and doctor's advice. Teams are not exactly inclined to fully listen to a player, especially a young one, because it is natural that a player will push his body to all limits in order to be on the field. Athletes are wired to compete and confront challenges, and no successful player gets to the professional level by backing down from sort of pain or discomfort.
I do not favor the idea of having Joba in the bullpen to start the season and then sending him to the minor leagues to get him back to a starters role. He could potentially miss two months of the season in New York, and those two months may have great repercussions at the end of the season if the Yankees just so happen to be trailing the Red Sox by two games with a week to play. How can any team afford to take their best arm out of the picture for a third of the season? That part doesn't make sense to me.
The impact of the Jobe Rules Volume 2 will be most felt in how the rotation shakes out. Andy Pettitte and Chien Ming Wang are entrenched at the top of the rotation, as is Phil Hughes. The Yankees, like it or not, still have Mike Mussina with one year left on his contract. You can't exactly put a veteran, who has done as much as Mussina, into the bullpen and tell him he is going to be a long reliever to finish his career.
There was no great way to resolve the Mussina issue, so this certainly helps. The Yankees are now in a position to give him a shot to earn his spot in the rotation for one more year. New York needs him to pitch like a veteran, even if he can turn in a bunch of Greg Maddux-like performanes, somewhere along the lines of 5-6 innings and 2-3 runs. That will be much better than the alternative, and the Yankees will win plenty of those games given their offense.
Ian Kennedy, I believe, is the front-runner to claim the fifth spot in the rotation. If these five are set in place, the Yankees now have a pretty formidable staff with two stoppers at the back end of ballgames. Again, this is all set up by the fact that Chamberlain is back in the bullpen.
There are plenty of question marks in that rotation, and I know it is impossible to assume that there will be no injuries or setbacks for an entire season. Just doesn't happen. In the event that Mussina, or somebody else, makes a trip to the DL, the Yankees have Kei Igawa waiting to be given another shot. Igawa is as risky as any other, but he was a solid starter in Japan, and there isn't any reason he can make some strides from last season and at least help hold up the fort.
If the aforementioned scenario takes place, I would just allow Joba to spend an entire season in the bullpen, without any restrictions on using his arm. Let him throw in back to back games. Let him throw two innings one day, followed by a day of rest. If you wish to get creative, give him two or three innings in a game where there is a game the following day, and an off-day following that on the schedule.
This would make him as valuable as any reliever in baseball, all the while keeping him from solely pitching one inning outings all season. 2009 seems like the best year to break Joba into the rotation with Mussina gone and Hughes and Kennedy having a full season of experience under their belts. Whatever the decision may be come April 1, 2008, the Yankees should not be flip flopping Chamberlain, while wasting other resources.
I cannot remember a time in New York, before Joba, where there was any anticipated event that rivaled the ninth inning. The ninth inning in The Bronx is beloved because that is when the closer of all closers, at least in the eyes of Yankee diehards, comes in to pitch his inning and inflict torturous amounts of pain and helplessness onto his opponent. That all changed when this Nebraska dandy entered the equation.
It is not as if Rivera's entrance doesn't hold any weight anymore, because it certainly does, as seen and felt by the unmistaken buzz that fills the stadium when "Enter Sandman" blasts through the stadium speakers. But Chamberlain's presence made the eigth inning just as fun to watch, and eventually, more electric to witness. In the first few outings of Joba's career, it resembled the rather unknown band who opens for the muscial legend, and leaves a pleasant feelign of surprise in all of those at the concert.
Now Yankee fans aren't treated to a single concert, but precisely a festival of baseball's best tunes. Going to a Yankee game an staying for the entire duration of the contest is like theater hopping on a summer day. Two or three shows for the price of one. It is an absolute win-win scenario for New Yorkers, and this is without calculating the effects of witnessing Alex Rodriguez hit. Let alone simply feeling the magnitude of Derek Jeter's on-field persona.
After Chamberlain took to the bullpen role and dominated with his high-octane fastball and mordant slider, I wondered if we were witnessing another Jonathan Papelbon situation, where the once-heralded starter turns out to be so good in the bullpen that he never goes back to the rotation. This would of been a much more plausible scenario had the Yankees not resigned Rivera to a three year deal.
Nonetheless, to have a great 1-2 punch at the back of the bullpen is a great commodity that is capable of pushing teams over the hump, rather than experiencing an excrutiating first-round exit in the postseason. But with the great Mo Rivera back, how can you not put an arm with that much power into the rotation where his value is exponentially greater?
Well, it appears as if the Yankees brass has made their decision on how they will handle the situation going into spring training. The Yankees released a report saying that Chamberlain will open the season as the set-up man and then will will have a short stint in the minors around June to stretch himself out, with a debut in the New York rotation set for after the All-Star break.
This plan was devised in an effort to continue to limit the number of innings that Chamberlain throws in the early years of his career, and it also, to some degree, helps clear up the situation regarding the surplus of starting pitchers they have. I think they Yankees are trying to be smart about the way they develop Joba, with the emphasis on decreasing the risk of injury as much as possible.
I like the way this plan affects the Yankees roster, because it seems like a suitable way to get as much out of the arms at hand as possible. I do not like, however, the reigns that are being put on Joba. I understand trying to limit young pitchers' workloads, and increase them slowly over time. But this is professional baseball and these guys train themselves year around to be strong and throw a lot of ptiches. It is their job to be able to take the ball and compete for a long season.
With that said, I can't knock any organization for taking this approach because of the financial implications. The Yankees have a lot of money, and a large part of their future success, invested in Chamberlain and they are going to protect that as best as they can given their medical research and doctor's advice. Teams are not exactly inclined to fully listen to a player, especially a young one, because it is natural that a player will push his body to all limits in order to be on the field. Athletes are wired to compete and confront challenges, and no successful player gets to the professional level by backing down from sort of pain or discomfort.
I do not favor the idea of having Joba in the bullpen to start the season and then sending him to the minor leagues to get him back to a starters role. He could potentially miss two months of the season in New York, and those two months may have great repercussions at the end of the season if the Yankees just so happen to be trailing the Red Sox by two games with a week to play. How can any team afford to take their best arm out of the picture for a third of the season? That part doesn't make sense to me.
The impact of the Jobe Rules Volume 2 will be most felt in how the rotation shakes out. Andy Pettitte and Chien Ming Wang are entrenched at the top of the rotation, as is Phil Hughes. The Yankees, like it or not, still have Mike Mussina with one year left on his contract. You can't exactly put a veteran, who has done as much as Mussina, into the bullpen and tell him he is going to be a long reliever to finish his career.
There was no great way to resolve the Mussina issue, so this certainly helps. The Yankees are now in a position to give him a shot to earn his spot in the rotation for one more year. New York needs him to pitch like a veteran, even if he can turn in a bunch of Greg Maddux-like performanes, somewhere along the lines of 5-6 innings and 2-3 runs. That will be much better than the alternative, and the Yankees will win plenty of those games given their offense.
Ian Kennedy, I believe, is the front-runner to claim the fifth spot in the rotation. If these five are set in place, the Yankees now have a pretty formidable staff with two stoppers at the back end of ballgames. Again, this is all set up by the fact that Chamberlain is back in the bullpen.
There are plenty of question marks in that rotation, and I know it is impossible to assume that there will be no injuries or setbacks for an entire season. Just doesn't happen. In the event that Mussina, or somebody else, makes a trip to the DL, the Yankees have Kei Igawa waiting to be given another shot. Igawa is as risky as any other, but he was a solid starter in Japan, and there isn't any reason he can make some strides from last season and at least help hold up the fort.
If the aforementioned scenario takes place, I would just allow Joba to spend an entire season in the bullpen, without any restrictions on using his arm. Let him throw in back to back games. Let him throw two innings one day, followed by a day of rest. If you wish to get creative, give him two or three innings in a game where there is a game the following day, and an off-day following that on the schedule.
This would make him as valuable as any reliever in baseball, all the while keeping him from solely pitching one inning outings all season. 2009 seems like the best year to break Joba into the rotation with Mussina gone and Hughes and Kennedy having a full season of experience under their belts. Whatever the decision may be come April 1, 2008, the Yankees should not be flip flopping Chamberlain, while wasting other resources.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Phillies still the big dog
The National League East is one of the best divisions in baseball year in and year out, and 2008 appears to be no different. In a time when the American League rings supreme in baseball, there will be plenty of buzz in Florida when the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies open camp next week. There will be floods of reporters waiting to ask their first questions of the spring and gangs of photographers wondering what the great Johan Santana must look like in Mets blue.
There are too many cynics around the game in this day of steroids and performance enhancing drugs, and those same cynics are drifting into the meat and potatoes of baseball coverage, which is the actual on field action. This is the greatest Spring Training for the Mets that I can remember, and yet there are still plenty of those who believe that there will be a hangover in Florida from the late-season collapse in 2007.
It is a legitimate point that the Mets need to show that they are the team that was on the field in the first half of 2007 and not the team from Queens who disentegrated on the field and in the clubhouse down the stretch. But there is absolutely no way that those thoughts take precedence over the excitment that is being built up around these Mets because of the pitcher they just traded for. Some view the Mets as the clear-cut favorite to emerge from the National League and make an appearance in the World Series.
I love what the Mets have to offer, especially with The Great Johan, but I don't think it is nearly that cut and dry. The Mets, after a quick glance, appear as on of the top 3 teams in the National League heading into Spring Training, but I think there will be plenty of competition in their own division, let alone the rest of the National League.
The NL East has really come down to a two horse race with the Atlanta Braves being a sleeper third pick. The Philadelphia Phillies made an improbably comeback in 2007 to take the the NL East crown and it will be interesting to see if they can parlay that momentum and confidence into a breakout 2008 season. I don't think the Phillies have played their best baseball yet, and I am hoping that the energy and fun we saw on the field last September is no fluke. But there is the realization that the Phillies could turn out to be the cousin of Frank TV, where the product was shoved into our face so fast that we quickly fell in love, only to realize it is was a bust when it made its full season debut. We shall see.
There is plenty of news surrounding both clubs this offseason so in order to really get a feel for the talent level on both teams, one needs to take a closer look at how they stack up against each other, and then factor in the changes that have been made to the respective roster.
The Phillies offer one of the most explosive offenses in baseball, and even though Citizens Bank Park nurtures the hitting cornucopia, I do not like to give any ballpark too much credit or too little blame for how a team fares. So with the park affect aside, all the Phillies did was turn in the best offense in the National League and the second best offense in Major League Baseball.
Philadelphia used catalysts like Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino at the top of the lineup to score 892 runs in 2007. The production isn't by means of small ball either as the Phillies blasted 213 home runs, drove in 850 runs, and posted a .458 slugging percentage. Ryan Howard and Chase Utley are the anchors of this high-octane offense, and as long as they are in place, the Phillies will repeatedly put up huge numbers, regardless of the improved pitching in their division.
No team is without question marks though and there a couple factors off the top of my head that push me to believe that the Phillies will not be quite as efficient this season. Jimmy Rollins exploded in 2007 and turned in the best season of his career as he joined the 20/20/20/20 club along with Detroit's Curtis Granderson. Could this possibly be signs of Rollins hitting his peak as a player? If so, I have clearly underestimated Rollins and his potential because those are nothing short of superstar numbers.
I have always thought of Rollins as a premier player, but not *that* good. I think Jimmy will have a tough time getting to those levels in 2008, therefore a slight dropoff only seems natural. Career years are suppossed to be just that; a season in which a player's statistics go above and beyond what is typically expected from him. So with that in mind, his production will be a few notches down, although it is possible that his career averages are on the way up.
The other factor that makes me skeptical of the Phillies offense in 2008 compared to their offense in 2007 is the fact that Aaron Rowand had a monster season, a career year by a mile, in centerfield. It is not as if we can expect a slight decline from Rowand in 2008, due to the reality that he used his breakout year to ink a five-year deal with the Giants. With Rowand out of town, there is a big void that must be replaced after Howard and Utley in the middle of the order.
That being said, there are two reasons why the Phillies may keep up the same pace. Whether or not Ryan Howard gets in touch with his 2006 self remains to be seen, but that would go a long way towards filling the void left by Rowand's departure. Don't get me wrong, Howard still had a good season last year after his slow start, but he is no longer just any Majore League player. When we talk about "good" seasons and league averages, we are comparing them to the solid players that fill Major League rosters. But we are not applying them to superstars whatsoever. Howard has reached A-Rod's level where he has set his own standards. So, again, by Howard's standards, if he can hit like we know he is capable of for a full season, then there is absolutely more to fear when Johan Santana comes to town.
The emergence of Shane Victorino in the outfield is a reason why I love what may possibly come out of Philadelphia this summer. Assuming some players, mainly Rollins, baclk off from their 2007 production, it is not unreasonable to assume that Victorino may be on his way up in terms of potential production. The outfielder broke onto the scene with a good 2007 and made himself known as a pest at the top of the order with Rollins. If he continues to improve and increase his OBP, then the Phillies might not decline at the plate much after all.
The Mets are a little more pedestrian at the plate, although they have the potential to be on the best offenses in all of baseball if they could get full seasons from all of their players. New York has plenty of big name players on the field at any given time, and that is reason to expect big things from them in 2008. With a core built around Jose Reyes and david Wright, them Mets turned in the fourth best offense in the National League and the tenth best offense in all of baseball in 2007. The aforementioned Reyes is the key to everything falling into place for this lineup.
New York scored 804 runs to go along with a .342 OBP and a .432 slugging percentage. Both of these figures are at least twelve points below the Phillies respective numbers, and the Mets do not come close to the Phils in terms of power production. The Mets come in far behind the Phillies with 177 home runs and 761 runs batted in. The problem with the Mets is that they relied to heavily on the legs of Jose Reyes. They counted on Reyes getting on base and Paul Lo Duca in the two-hole to set up the meat of the order. Lo Duca is gone this year, and that move will prove to be irrelevant.
The middle of this order can be as good as anybody's given that all players are healthy. David Wright has emerged as one of the preeminent players in baseball, and he will continue to put up big seasons as he has not even begun to enter his prime. Behind him is Carlos Beltran who stamped himself as one of the most electric players in baseball with a memorable postseason performance for the Houston Astros is 2004. The Mets need that guy to take the field this year and not the guy who folded under the pressure of the New York media and struggled to stay on the field due to injury.
The question mark of all of this is Carlos Delgado and what he will be able to bring to the table in 2008. As the seasons pass and Delgado is another year older, there is less and less reason to be optimistic when regarding the first baseman. If and when Delgado is healthy for a full season is the year that the Mets will put a great offense onto the field. There is no other hitter in that lineup that could have such a profound effect on everyone else the way Carlos Delgado can. Unless you are Jose Reyes, of course. It is not a coincidence that when the Mets choked down the stretch and forked over a comfortable lead to the surging Phillies, Jose Reyes happened to be in the midst of his greatest slump in his young career. Think about that.
If the Phillies have the clear advantage when it comes to offense, then the Mets have the clear advantage when it comes to pitching. The Mets already had a formidable rotation last season when they consistenly ran out Tom Glavine, John Maine, and Oliver Perez. That foundation lead the Mets to the seventh best pitching staff in baseball by posting a 4.26 ERA, +54 run differential, 570 walks, and 1134 strikeouts. That should of been enough to make their lead last down the stretch, but as was seen in September, nothing could prevent their demise.
Tom Glavine headed back to Atlanta to end his career where he made his name, but that won't have much of an affect on the Mets because of the biggest trade of the winter. By now, everyone knows that the Mets have landed Johan Santana, and I can't even fathom how good this guy is going to be with the run support the Mets will provide him, coupled with the inferior competition in the National League. Where the Mets will really make their mark is in the other four rotation spots.
If Pedro Martinez can regain his health and comeback to be an average starter in 2008, then the Mets will be very good on the hill. Pedro's stuff has diminished, but he can still win 15 games on savvy alone. With Santana's presence in place, this allows John Maine to take on the role of number three starter, where he should be much better than almost all number three starters on other clubs. He will no longer be matching up against the opponent's ace, and this will only mean more wins for the Mets and for Maine. Oliver Perez has shown flashes of what he is capable of, but he is just as much of an unknown as who is going to fill the fifth slot.
Pitching was the only thing that kept the Phillies from making a real run at the NL pennant last season, and signs point towards improvement this year. The starting rotation was a question mark for the entire summer, and this year figures to be different. The 2007 Philadelphia Phillies pitching staff was the thirteenth best in baseball posting a 4.73 ERA, and a +71 run differential to go along with 558 walks and 1050 strikeouts. As we mentioned in the hitting discussion, Citizens Bank Park has something to do with the inflated numbers, but the majority of it is due to the simple reality that the pitching staff was flat out mediocre at best.
I am expecting big things out of Cole Hamels this year as he should emerge to be the ace of the staff and work his way into elite status on the mound if the elbow problems he had last season prove to be nothing major. Brett Myers will make the move from closer back to the starting rotation now that Brad Lidge is at the back of the bullpen. This will help the Phillies make great strides in their depth because Myers can bring ace-like stuff to the hill. What is more important is the fact that the Phillies won't have to hand the ball over to question marks, such as Kyle Lohse, as often.
My one concern is with the bullpen, and not in a bad way. The bullpen was so good last year that they could be given much of the credit for why the Phillies were able to squeak into the playoffs. They were so incredibly good, that if they pitched half as well this year, they still would probably be considered decent. We know for a fact that the bullpen as a whole cannot repeat their 2007 performance, which was filled with many out of body performances. The Phillies relied heavily on Myers along with Ricky Romero and Tom Gordon. Gordon is a great power reliever, but the are questions regarding what he has left in the tank as he reaches his upper-30s. And Romero is more of a Cinderella strory than anything. The lefthander was released by the Angels before being picked up and turning into Brian Fuentes, the set-up guy, not the guy who blew the saves. If a repeat performance is at all possible, then this Phillies pitching staff just may surprise people.
All things considered, I still believe the Phillies are the team to beat in the NL East, and they may be atop that division for years to come. Their offense is superior to the Mets, and even with the addition of Johan Santana, I don't think it is out of the realm of possibility to expect more out of the Hamels-Myers duo than from Santana-Martinez. Regardless of how the details play out, we could be at the start of a great rivalry in the NL East. The Red Sox and Yankees always duke it out, as do the Angels and A's and Dodgers and Padres. This has been the Mets division, but with the emergence of Howard, Utley, Hamels and Co., the Phils may be able to trounce the talent the Mets put on the field. Of course, this is baseball, and all of this is just small talk since Spring Training hasn't even begun. But if one thing is for sure, it is the fact that we will have a whole lot of fun watching these two teams face off while Santana is in New York.
There are too many cynics around the game in this day of steroids and performance enhancing drugs, and those same cynics are drifting into the meat and potatoes of baseball coverage, which is the actual on field action. This is the greatest Spring Training for the Mets that I can remember, and yet there are still plenty of those who believe that there will be a hangover in Florida from the late-season collapse in 2007.
It is a legitimate point that the Mets need to show that they are the team that was on the field in the first half of 2007 and not the team from Queens who disentegrated on the field and in the clubhouse down the stretch. But there is absolutely no way that those thoughts take precedence over the excitment that is being built up around these Mets because of the pitcher they just traded for. Some view the Mets as the clear-cut favorite to emerge from the National League and make an appearance in the World Series.
I love what the Mets have to offer, especially with The Great Johan, but I don't think it is nearly that cut and dry. The Mets, after a quick glance, appear as on of the top 3 teams in the National League heading into Spring Training, but I think there will be plenty of competition in their own division, let alone the rest of the National League.
The NL East has really come down to a two horse race with the Atlanta Braves being a sleeper third pick. The Philadelphia Phillies made an improbably comeback in 2007 to take the the NL East crown and it will be interesting to see if they can parlay that momentum and confidence into a breakout 2008 season. I don't think the Phillies have played their best baseball yet, and I am hoping that the energy and fun we saw on the field last September is no fluke. But there is the realization that the Phillies could turn out to be the cousin of Frank TV, where the product was shoved into our face so fast that we quickly fell in love, only to realize it is was a bust when it made its full season debut. We shall see.
There is plenty of news surrounding both clubs this offseason so in order to really get a feel for the talent level on both teams, one needs to take a closer look at how they stack up against each other, and then factor in the changes that have been made to the respective roster.
The Phillies offer one of the most explosive offenses in baseball, and even though Citizens Bank Park nurtures the hitting cornucopia, I do not like to give any ballpark too much credit or too little blame for how a team fares. So with the park affect aside, all the Phillies did was turn in the best offense in the National League and the second best offense in Major League Baseball.
Philadelphia used catalysts like Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino at the top of the lineup to score 892 runs in 2007. The production isn't by means of small ball either as the Phillies blasted 213 home runs, drove in 850 runs, and posted a .458 slugging percentage. Ryan Howard and Chase Utley are the anchors of this high-octane offense, and as long as they are in place, the Phillies will repeatedly put up huge numbers, regardless of the improved pitching in their division.
No team is without question marks though and there a couple factors off the top of my head that push me to believe that the Phillies will not be quite as efficient this season. Jimmy Rollins exploded in 2007 and turned in the best season of his career as he joined the 20/20/20/20 club along with Detroit's Curtis Granderson. Could this possibly be signs of Rollins hitting his peak as a player? If so, I have clearly underestimated Rollins and his potential because those are nothing short of superstar numbers.
I have always thought of Rollins as a premier player, but not *that* good. I think Jimmy will have a tough time getting to those levels in 2008, therefore a slight dropoff only seems natural. Career years are suppossed to be just that; a season in which a player's statistics go above and beyond what is typically expected from him. So with that in mind, his production will be a few notches down, although it is possible that his career averages are on the way up.
The other factor that makes me skeptical of the Phillies offense in 2008 compared to their offense in 2007 is the fact that Aaron Rowand had a monster season, a career year by a mile, in centerfield. It is not as if we can expect a slight decline from Rowand in 2008, due to the reality that he used his breakout year to ink a five-year deal with the Giants. With Rowand out of town, there is a big void that must be replaced after Howard and Utley in the middle of the order.
That being said, there are two reasons why the Phillies may keep up the same pace. Whether or not Ryan Howard gets in touch with his 2006 self remains to be seen, but that would go a long way towards filling the void left by Rowand's departure. Don't get me wrong, Howard still had a good season last year after his slow start, but he is no longer just any Majore League player. When we talk about "good" seasons and league averages, we are comparing them to the solid players that fill Major League rosters. But we are not applying them to superstars whatsoever. Howard has reached A-Rod's level where he has set his own standards. So, again, by Howard's standards, if he can hit like we know he is capable of for a full season, then there is absolutely more to fear when Johan Santana comes to town.
The emergence of Shane Victorino in the outfield is a reason why I love what may possibly come out of Philadelphia this summer. Assuming some players, mainly Rollins, baclk off from their 2007 production, it is not unreasonable to assume that Victorino may be on his way up in terms of potential production. The outfielder broke onto the scene with a good 2007 and made himself known as a pest at the top of the order with Rollins. If he continues to improve and increase his OBP, then the Phillies might not decline at the plate much after all.
The Mets are a little more pedestrian at the plate, although they have the potential to be on the best offenses in all of baseball if they could get full seasons from all of their players. New York has plenty of big name players on the field at any given time, and that is reason to expect big things from them in 2008. With a core built around Jose Reyes and david Wright, them Mets turned in the fourth best offense in the National League and the tenth best offense in all of baseball in 2007. The aforementioned Reyes is the key to everything falling into place for this lineup.
New York scored 804 runs to go along with a .342 OBP and a .432 slugging percentage. Both of these figures are at least twelve points below the Phillies respective numbers, and the Mets do not come close to the Phils in terms of power production. The Mets come in far behind the Phillies with 177 home runs and 761 runs batted in. The problem with the Mets is that they relied to heavily on the legs of Jose Reyes. They counted on Reyes getting on base and Paul Lo Duca in the two-hole to set up the meat of the order. Lo Duca is gone this year, and that move will prove to be irrelevant.
The middle of this order can be as good as anybody's given that all players are healthy. David Wright has emerged as one of the preeminent players in baseball, and he will continue to put up big seasons as he has not even begun to enter his prime. Behind him is Carlos Beltran who stamped himself as one of the most electric players in baseball with a memorable postseason performance for the Houston Astros is 2004. The Mets need that guy to take the field this year and not the guy who folded under the pressure of the New York media and struggled to stay on the field due to injury.
The question mark of all of this is Carlos Delgado and what he will be able to bring to the table in 2008. As the seasons pass and Delgado is another year older, there is less and less reason to be optimistic when regarding the first baseman. If and when Delgado is healthy for a full season is the year that the Mets will put a great offense onto the field. There is no other hitter in that lineup that could have such a profound effect on everyone else the way Carlos Delgado can. Unless you are Jose Reyes, of course. It is not a coincidence that when the Mets choked down the stretch and forked over a comfortable lead to the surging Phillies, Jose Reyes happened to be in the midst of his greatest slump in his young career. Think about that.
If the Phillies have the clear advantage when it comes to offense, then the Mets have the clear advantage when it comes to pitching. The Mets already had a formidable rotation last season when they consistenly ran out Tom Glavine, John Maine, and Oliver Perez. That foundation lead the Mets to the seventh best pitching staff in baseball by posting a 4.26 ERA, +54 run differential, 570 walks, and 1134 strikeouts. That should of been enough to make their lead last down the stretch, but as was seen in September, nothing could prevent their demise.
Tom Glavine headed back to Atlanta to end his career where he made his name, but that won't have much of an affect on the Mets because of the biggest trade of the winter. By now, everyone knows that the Mets have landed Johan Santana, and I can't even fathom how good this guy is going to be with the run support the Mets will provide him, coupled with the inferior competition in the National League. Where the Mets will really make their mark is in the other four rotation spots.
If Pedro Martinez can regain his health and comeback to be an average starter in 2008, then the Mets will be very good on the hill. Pedro's stuff has diminished, but he can still win 15 games on savvy alone. With Santana's presence in place, this allows John Maine to take on the role of number three starter, where he should be much better than almost all number three starters on other clubs. He will no longer be matching up against the opponent's ace, and this will only mean more wins for the Mets and for Maine. Oliver Perez has shown flashes of what he is capable of, but he is just as much of an unknown as who is going to fill the fifth slot.
Pitching was the only thing that kept the Phillies from making a real run at the NL pennant last season, and signs point towards improvement this year. The starting rotation was a question mark for the entire summer, and this year figures to be different. The 2007 Philadelphia Phillies pitching staff was the thirteenth best in baseball posting a 4.73 ERA, and a +71 run differential to go along with 558 walks and 1050 strikeouts. As we mentioned in the hitting discussion, Citizens Bank Park has something to do with the inflated numbers, but the majority of it is due to the simple reality that the pitching staff was flat out mediocre at best.
I am expecting big things out of Cole Hamels this year as he should emerge to be the ace of the staff and work his way into elite status on the mound if the elbow problems he had last season prove to be nothing major. Brett Myers will make the move from closer back to the starting rotation now that Brad Lidge is at the back of the bullpen. This will help the Phillies make great strides in their depth because Myers can bring ace-like stuff to the hill. What is more important is the fact that the Phillies won't have to hand the ball over to question marks, such as Kyle Lohse, as often.
My one concern is with the bullpen, and not in a bad way. The bullpen was so good last year that they could be given much of the credit for why the Phillies were able to squeak into the playoffs. They were so incredibly good, that if they pitched half as well this year, they still would probably be considered decent. We know for a fact that the bullpen as a whole cannot repeat their 2007 performance, which was filled with many out of body performances. The Phillies relied heavily on Myers along with Ricky Romero and Tom Gordon. Gordon is a great power reliever, but the are questions regarding what he has left in the tank as he reaches his upper-30s. And Romero is more of a Cinderella strory than anything. The lefthander was released by the Angels before being picked up and turning into Brian Fuentes, the set-up guy, not the guy who blew the saves. If a repeat performance is at all possible, then this Phillies pitching staff just may surprise people.
All things considered, I still believe the Phillies are the team to beat in the NL East, and they may be atop that division for years to come. Their offense is superior to the Mets, and even with the addition of Johan Santana, I don't think it is out of the realm of possibility to expect more out of the Hamels-Myers duo than from Santana-Martinez. Regardless of how the details play out, we could be at the start of a great rivalry in the NL East. The Red Sox and Yankees always duke it out, as do the Angels and A's and Dodgers and Padres. This has been the Mets division, but with the emergence of Howard, Utley, Hamels and Co., the Phils may be able to trounce the talent the Mets put on the field. Of course, this is baseball, and all of this is just small talk since Spring Training hasn't even begun. But if one thing is for sure, it is the fact that we will have a whole lot of fun watching these two teams face off while Santana is in New York.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Boston has a new mayor
With Super Bowl talk dominating practically all of the space society allots sports coverage this week, anything short of Johan Santana reaching an agreement with the New York Mets would barely make the back page of any publication. But if you are a rabid baseball fan, of course, then you are aware of the smaller scale deal the Boston Red Sox struck this week with first baseman Sean Casey.
Casey inked a one-year, $700,000 deal with the Red Sox to back up Kevin Youkilis. This may not qualify as major news by any stretch of the imagination, because it really isn't. But the Red Sox are so well put together these days that there are no major holes that need to be filled.
Boston is returning all of the key pieces from last year's World Series team, and therefore are set up to have a stretch of another couple years of dominance. That leaves only fine tuning and tweaking to be done to the ballclub, perfectly manicuring the edges so a complete team shows up to Spring Training in a couple of weeks.
This is the exact deal that is going to benefit the Red Sox this season when the summer shapes up to its long and grueling identity. The Red Sox have talent spread all over the field, therefore they do not need to bring in any impact players.
Red Sox management should devise a plan to fill their bench with players who fit the personality of the organization. This ballclub is known for its loose play and team-first attitude in the clubhouse, and Sean Casey, a.k.a. "The Mayor", is going to fit perfectly.
Casey is referred to as the nicest guy in baseball by almost all players and personnel who come across him. As proved in Detroit, Casey is a team-guy who knows how to lead and can share his wealth of knowledge of the game with Boston's young players. There aren't too many people in baseball who play the game with more respect than Casey, and that goes a long way in terms of the makings of a championship club.
On top of all of the intangibles that will undoubtedly make Casey a fan favorite, it is not as if the Red Sox signed some chump to fill a jersey either. Casey will be able to spell Youkilis on days when the Red Sox may be facing a tough righthander, or when "Youk" simply needs a day off because of his grinding style of play.
Casey is a lifetime .300 hitter who, I imagine, will be quite a weapon as a pinch-hitter late in the game. There is no doubt that Casey will leave his mark on some ballgames in Boston this summer, regardless if he is no longer a starter. To have Casey also means insurance at DH in the event that David Ortiz needs to make a trip to the disabled list due to his balky knee. Even with the diminished at-bats, Casey is going to bring another dash of fun to the Red Sox clubhouse as a guy who has instant credibility. Not only can Red Sox fans be ecstatic about the product that the front office is putting on the field these days, but New Englanders can be proud of the type of people that are representing their home as well.
Casey inked a one-year, $700,000 deal with the Red Sox to back up Kevin Youkilis. This may not qualify as major news by any stretch of the imagination, because it really isn't. But the Red Sox are so well put together these days that there are no major holes that need to be filled.
Boston is returning all of the key pieces from last year's World Series team, and therefore are set up to have a stretch of another couple years of dominance. That leaves only fine tuning and tweaking to be done to the ballclub, perfectly manicuring the edges so a complete team shows up to Spring Training in a couple of weeks.
This is the exact deal that is going to benefit the Red Sox this season when the summer shapes up to its long and grueling identity. The Red Sox have talent spread all over the field, therefore they do not need to bring in any impact players.
Red Sox management should devise a plan to fill their bench with players who fit the personality of the organization. This ballclub is known for its loose play and team-first attitude in the clubhouse, and Sean Casey, a.k.a. "The Mayor", is going to fit perfectly.
Casey is referred to as the nicest guy in baseball by almost all players and personnel who come across him. As proved in Detroit, Casey is a team-guy who knows how to lead and can share his wealth of knowledge of the game with Boston's young players. There aren't too many people in baseball who play the game with more respect than Casey, and that goes a long way in terms of the makings of a championship club.
On top of all of the intangibles that will undoubtedly make Casey a fan favorite, it is not as if the Red Sox signed some chump to fill a jersey either. Casey will be able to spell Youkilis on days when the Red Sox may be facing a tough righthander, or when "Youk" simply needs a day off because of his grinding style of play.
Casey is a lifetime .300 hitter who, I imagine, will be quite a weapon as a pinch-hitter late in the game. There is no doubt that Casey will leave his mark on some ballgames in Boston this summer, regardless if he is no longer a starter. To have Casey also means insurance at DH in the event that David Ortiz needs to make a trip to the disabled list due to his balky knee. Even with the diminished at-bats, Casey is going to bring another dash of fun to the Red Sox clubhouse as a guy who has instant credibility. Not only can Red Sox fans be ecstatic about the product that the front office is putting on the field these days, but New Englanders can be proud of the type of people that are representing their home as well.
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