Below are the 10 most recent journal entries recorded in angelshome's LiveJournal:

Tuesday, December 26th, 2006
5:35 pm	Winter meetings Wrap-Up As the Winter Meetings come to a close, here is an in-depth review of each team's transactions over the past week in Orlando. American League- Baltimore Orioles - None Boston Red Sox - Signed OF J.D. Drew to a 5YR/$70 million contract, Signed SS Julio Lugo to a 4YR/$36 million contract Chicago White Sox - Traded RHP Freddy Garcia to the Philadelphia Phillies for RHP Gavin Floyd and RHP Gio Gonzalez, Re-signed IF Pablo Ozuna to a 1YR/$800,000 contract Cleveland Indians - Signed OF David Delluci to a 3YR/$11.5 million contract, Signed RHP Joe Borowski to a 1YR/$4.25 million contract--with an option for a second year Detroit Tigers - Acquired LHP Edward Campusano from the Milwaukee Brewers for cash Kansas City Royals - Signed RHP Gil Meche to a 5YR/$55 million contract, Traded RHP Ambiorix Burgos to the New York Mets for RHP Brian Bannister Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - None Minnesota Twins - None New York Yankees - None Oakland Athletics - Signed C/DH Mike Piazza to a 1YR/$8.5 million, Acquired OF Ryan Goleski from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for cash, Signed LHP Alan Embree to a 2YR/$5.5 million contract--with a club option for 2009, Released RHP Juan Dominguez, Named Ty Van Burkleo hitting coach Seattle Mariners - Signed OF Jose Guillen to a 1YR/$5.5 million contract--with an option for a second year, Traded RHP Rafael Soriano to the Atlanta Braves for LHP Horacio Ramirez Tampa Bay Devil Rays - Released RHP Travis Harper, Designated LHP Bobby Livingston for assignment, Sent OF Ryan Goleski to the Oakland Athletics for cash Texas Rangers - Re-signed RHP Vincente Padilla to a 3YR/$34 million contract Toronto Blue Jays - None National League- Atlanta Braves - Traded LHP Horacio Ramirez to the Seattle Mariners for RHP Rafael Soriano Arizona Diamondbacks - None Chicago Cubs - Named Ryne Sandberg manager of the Peoria Chiefs (A), Signed LHP Ted Lilly to a 4YR/$40 million contract, Signed OF/1B Daryle Ward to a 1YR/$1 million contract, Sent OF Josh Hamilton to the Cincinnati Reds for cash--shortly after acquiring his rights in the Rule 5 Draft Cincinnati Reds - Re-signed RHP David Weathers to a 2YR/$5 million contract, Acquired OF Josh Hamilton from the Chicago Cubs for cash Colorado Rockies - Signed RHP LaTroy Hawkins to a 1YR/$3.5 million contract--with an option for a second year Florida Marlins - None Houston Astros - None Los Angeles Dodgers - Signed RHP Jason Schmidt to a 3YR/$47 million contract, Signed OF Luis Gonzalez to a 1YR/$7 million contract, Signed C Mike Lieberthal to a 1YR/$1.25 million contract--with an option for a second year, Re-signed RHP Takashi Saito to a 1YR/$1 million contract Milwaukee Brewers - Sent LHP Edward Campusano to the Detroit Tigers for cash New York Mets - Traded RHP Brian Bannister to the Kansas City Royals for RHP Ambiorix Burgos Philadelphia Phillies - Traded RHP Gavin Floyd and RHP Gio Gonzalez to the Chicago White Sox for RHP Freddy Garcia Pittsburgh Pirates - None San Diego Padres - Signed RHP Greg Maddux to a 1YR/$10 million contract--with an option for a second year San Francisco Giants - Signed C Bengie Molina to a 3YR/$16 million contract, Signed IF Rich Aurilla to a 2YR/$8 million contract, Re-signed 3B Pedro Feliz to a 1YR/$5.1 million contract, Announced the retirement of 1B J.T. Snow St. Louis Cardinals - Signed RHP Chris Carpenter to a 5YR contract extension worth $63.5 million--with a team option for 2012 Washington Nationals - None (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006
1:11 pm	Trade Review If there's one thing Terry Ryan has shown a great knack for in his time as general manager of the Minnesota Twins, it's getting great value out of trades. While his track record in free agency may be far from spotless, he has been responsible for some of the most noteworthy trades of the last decade, which can often be described as nothing short of a "steal." While the A.J. Pierzynski trade that brought in Francisco Liriano, Joe Nathan and Boof Bonser may be his crowning achievement, you can't overlook the trades that produced players like Nick Punto, Jason Bartlett, and Shannon Stewart. Now, I'll take a look at the major trades that Ryan made over the course of this season as well as the previous offseason, and an analysis of how they're looking so far. As you might have guessed, a couple are looking like definite steals. Travis Bowyer and Scott Tyler to Florida for Luis Castillo Ryan has generally made it a rule of thumb to avoid parting with good pitching prospects. He made an exception to this philosophy last offseason went he sent Bowyer, along with low-level prospect Tyler, to the Marlins in return for a veteran second baseman in Castillo. Bowyer, a 20th-round draft pick by the Twins in 1999, was coming off an excellent 2005 campaign in which he posted a 2.78 ERA in 74 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level as a 24-year-old reliever. He struck out 96 and walked 40. The Marlins acquired him and it seemed that he could be the team's full-time closer as soon as this year. Unfortunately for Florida, Bowyer missed the entirety of the 2006 season with shoulder problems. He had surgery last month and is expected to miss the beginning of the 2007 season. Tyler, on the other hand, had an interesting season in the Marlins' system. He also struggled with injuries at times, but did manage to throw 61 1/3 innings, all at the Double-A level. During that span, Tyler posted a solid 3.67 ERA but struggled mightily with his control, walking 44 batters while striking out 52. Because of this, Tyler posted an ugly 1.63 WHIP despite allowing just 56 hits in those 61.1 IP. Castillo was not sensational in 2006, but he was a tremendous upgrade both offensively and defensively from anything the Twins have had at second base for the past several years. His batting line of .296/.358/.370 was right around his career averages (.293/.369/.358). While his patience was a little disappointing early in the season, he came around near the end and finished with a nearly even strikeout-to-walk ratio (58:56). Castillo also stole 25 bases and led the major leagues in infield hits, taking advantage of the Metrodome surface. Even if you're not a huge fan of Castillo (which I wouldn't say I am), you have to like the way this trade has turned out for the Twins so far. It's too early to stick a fork in Bowyer, but his career prospects have definitely taken a major hit. As for Tyler, it's tough to visualize a guy who posted a 6.46 BB/9 IP in Double-A as having a particularly bright future. J.C. Romero to Los Angeles Angels for Alexi Casilla This was a more traditional Ryan trade, both in its make-up and in its results. Ryan traded a guy whose value was probably higher than it should have been for a prospect who was likely undervalued in his respective organization, and the result is what appears to have been a major steal. Although he posted good numbers in 2005, it was fairly clear to anyone who watched the Twins that Romero had some serious issues. On the exterior, his 3.47 ERA and .235 BAA from that season looked pretty nice, but when you looked deeper there were some troubling peripherals. Romero's numbers were far worse in the second half of the season (4.94 ERA) than the first (2.43). He struggled greatly with his control against right-handed hitters (20 K, 29 BB). Also, it is well-documented that he was horrible at holding inherited runners on base. This year, those problems ballooned for Romero in Los Angeles, and the results were disastrous: a 6.70 ERA, .298/.382/.450 opponents' line, and a 31:28 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 48.1 IP. Righties hit .382/.455/.578 against Romero. Over in the Twins' organization, Casilla turned in an extremely impressive 2006 campaign. After hitting .331/.390/.406 over 78 games at Ft. Myers, he was bumped up to New Britain, where he hit .294/.375/.382 in 45 games. Between both levels, Casilla stole 50 bases while being caught just 10 times, and posted a solid 56:48 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His performance impressed the Twins so much that he earned a September call-up, during which he picked up one hit and two walks in six plate appearances. Casilla has turned himself into the Twins' top infield prospect, while Romero has turned himself into a sub par LOOGY with no ability to get right-handed hitters out. On top of all that, the guy who the Twins signed to replace Romero as their lefty specialist, Dennys Reyes, was arguably the best southpaw reliever in baseball. Another great trade for the Twins. Kyle Lohse to Cincinnati for Zac Ward Ryan resisted the urge to trade Lohse at the deadline in 2005, and then did so again during the last offseason. These turned out to be grave mistakes. Lohse was absolutely horrible early in the season for the Twins, posting a 7.07 ERA before they traded him in late July. He pitched pretty well upon arriving in Cininnati, posting a 2.78 ERA in August, but then fell back into his old habits and finished up the season with a terrible 6.46 ERA in September. For the season as a whole, Lohse posted a career-worst 5.83 ERA and opponents hit .298/.358/.444 against him. Those numbers are not good, but they're not really off-line with his career norms (.285/.342/.453). Lohse just generally seems to get hit hard, which leads me to believe his prognosis in Cincinnati is not great. He is a pain in the clubhouse and he earns more money than he deserves, and now he's Wayne Krivsky's problem to deal with. For his part, Ward struggled for the Twins, going 1-4 with a 5.93 ERA in six starts for Beloit. That's pretty disappointing, particularly since he had pitched so well (7-0, 2.29 ERA. 0.97 WHIP) for Cincinnati's Low-A affiliate in the first chunk of the season. Ward will turn 23 in January, which is starting to get a little old for a Low-A ball prospect. It's hard to predict what will become of him, but at the very least this trade was nice because it got Lohse's salary off the books. Still, it's saddening to think about how much more Ryan could have gotten in return for him had he traded him earlier. Juan Castro to Cincinnati for Brandon Roberts I would not rank Castro as one of the better backup shortstops in the league, so the fact that he started for the Twins for almost three months is an embarrassing blemish on the judgment records of Ryan and Ron Gardenhire. Nonetheless, they eventually woke up and yanked him in the middle of June, around the same time they cut bait on the Tony Batista experiment. Those two players were replaced by Jason Bartlett and Nick Punto, and the rest, as they say, is history. Since Castro was hitting .231/.258/.308 and nearing his 34th birthday when they traded him, anything the Twins got in return was going to be a bonus. That bonus turned out to be Roberts, a 21-year-old speedy outfielder playing for Sarasota, the Reds' High-A affiliate. When he came to the Twins organization, Roberts was hitting an unimpressive .267/.325/.308 in 60 games on the season. Once he started playing in Ft. Myers, however, Roberts broke out, hitting .316/.370/.396 in his 71 games there. Like Casilla, Roberts can terrorize on the basepaths; he stole 50 bases between Sarasota and Ft. Myers while being caught just 14 times. He doesn't have much discipline or power, but the high batting average and the stolen bases are encouraging for a young kid who is a versatile defender. Castro did finish the year pretty well for the Reds, hitting .284/.320/.421 in 95 at-bats in Cincinnati, but I think it's safe to say the Twins didn't (and won't) miss him that much. This was another very good trade. *** I decided not to review the Adam Harben-for-Phil Nevin trade in this article, because it's simply too early to make any judgments. If the Twins release Nevin during the offseason and Harben goes on to have a decent career, it will probably end up as a bad trade. On the flip side, the Twins might bring back Nevin for next year, and if Harben continues to pitch like he did this year for the rest of his career, the trade will look pretty nice. The analysis of these trades is still early and subject to change, but at this point it's looking like another successful season for Terry Ryan in the trade department. I'll certainly be interested to see what he can pull off in the coming months. (Comment on this)
Friday, September 29th, 2006
7:43 am	The A's Win the Pennant OK. So it wasn't Bobby Thomson's epic shot to win the 1951 National League pennant for the New York Giants, but I'll take it. Their 12-3 victory over Seattle combined with the Los Angeles Angels of Canoga Park's loss to Texas handed to A's their first division title and playoff appearance since 2003. This year's division winners were not without their own drama. Instead of winning one more game while the Angels were in Oakland, and after blowing a 9-3 lead in Seattle on Monday night, they were finally able to close the deal. They can now rest some of their starters for the playoffs. Maybe this is the year they get out of the Division Series. In other sports news, it is encouraging to see the Buffalo Sabres are pre-season picks to advance far in the Stanley Cup playoffs. If only these predictions held true. I like it better when my teams defy expectations and "over-achieve." The Bills lost this weekend to the Jets. My sister and her husband made it to the game. Got a sweatheart deal on tickets thanks to her best friend's husband. Seventeen rows up from the 40 yard line. I didn't catch the game, but it looked competitive, save the three turnover differential. I'm trying to make heads or tails out of this Terrell Owens drama. I'm not sure if it is a publicity stunt or what. He's just one emotionally damaged man, that's for sure. Anyway, Go A's, looking forward to hockey season and the Bills play Minnesota this weekend. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, August 29th, 2006
6:35 pm	Randomization: 08/22/06 Get this crap off my television. I'm not one to get into discussions about things like "what baseball games get on national TV". It's not because I don't think it's a worthy issue (after all, we're talking about sports here, so there isn't much that can't be fairly brought up and discussed). It's just not something that needs to be brought up every 30 seconds. But I've had enough. I've finally been driven to the point of no return when it comes to Major League Baseball. Here is the national television schedule for the current NFL preseason from NFL.com (not counting delayed broadcasts on NFL Network): Sunday, Aug. 6 Oakland vs. Philadelphia (HOF Game) (NBC, 8 p.m. ET) Thursday, Aug. 10 Indianapolis at St. Louis (FOX, 8 p.m. ET) Friday, Aug. 11 New England at Atlanta (CBS, 8 p.m. ET) Saturday, Aug. 12 Pittsburgh at Arizona (NFL Network, 4 p.m. ET) Sunday, Aug. 13 Washington at Cincinnati (NBC, 8 p.m. ET) Monday, Aug. 14 Oakland at Minnesota (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET) Thursday, Aug. 17 Kansas City at N.Y. Giants (FOX, 8 p.m. ET) Friday, Aug. 18 San Diego at Chicago (CBS, 8 p.m. ET) Saturday, Aug. 19 Arizona at New England (NFL Network, 8 p.m. ET) Sunday, Aug. 20 Seattle at Indianapolis (NBC, 8 p.m. ET) Monday, Aug. 21 Dallas at New Orleans (Shreveport, La.) (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET) Thursday, Aug. 24 Miami at Carolina (FOX, 8 p.m. ET) Friday, Aug. 25 Pittsburgh at Philadelphia (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET) Saturday, Aug. 26 Tampa Bay at Jacksonville (CBS, 8 p.m. ET) Sunday, Aug. 27 Houston at Denver (NFL Network, 8 p.m. ET) Monday, Aug. 28 Green Bay at Cincinnati (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET) 16 games. 24 of the 32 NFL teams featured. Repeat appearances for Cincinnati, New England, and Pittsburgh, three playoff teams from 2005, along with recent Super Bowl participants Oakland and Philadelphia. Arizona got two live games on NFL Network, with one of them being against media darling New England, and the other being the opening of their new stadium against the reigning and defending champions. It could always be better, but this is pretty good. Now, here is a month's worth of games scheduled to air on FOX Saturday Baseball. These are the only baseball games scheduled to air on over-the-air network television on a national level. Every market gets one game per week. Saturday, August 12, 2006 1 p.m. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim at New York Yankees Baltimore Orioles at Boston Red Sox Detroit Tigers at Chicago White Sox 4 p.m. San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday, August 19, 2006 1 p.m. New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox St. Louis Cardinals at Chicago Cubs 4 p.m. Arizona Diamondbacks at San Diego Padres Saturday, August 26, 2006 1 p.m. Chicago Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals Washington Nationals at Atlanta Braves 4 p.m. New York Yankees at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Saturday, September 16, 2006 1 p.m. Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees Florida Marlins at Atlanta Braves 4 p.m. San Francisco Giants at St. Louis Cardinals Philadelphia Phillies at Houston Astros For good measure, here is the ESPN schedule from the last week and for this week: Wednesday, August 16 Detroit Tigers at Boston Red Sox Thursday, August 17 Texas Rangers at Detroit Tigers Friday, August 18 New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox Sunday, August 20 New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox Monday, August 21 New York Yankees at Boston Red Sox Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres Wednesday, August 23 Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers Thursday, August 24 St. Louis Cardinals at New York Mets Sunday, August 27 Chicago Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals 23 total games. 19 of 30 teams are featured. The best part? Four teams with winning records, including AL West-leading Oakland, combine for ZERO appearances. One of them, Minnesota, just went head-to-head with the White Sox for three games, and they meet again this weekend. Six games featuring the top two teams in the AL Wild Card race, and none of them are televised nationally. Meanwhile, seven sub-.500 teams make national television appearances. Just what I want to see on a Saturday afternoon. The 59-65 Braves against the 54-71 Nationals. The Yankees are featured in nearly one-third of those games. The Red Sox are on in seven games. The Cubs, inexplicably, are featured three times, one more time than the cross-town rival White Sox, who have a noticeably better record. Baseball's best team, the Tigers, are on four times. The National League's best team, the New York Mets, are on once. And when you decide to hate on ESPN for their selections (which admittedly suck), look for a few moments at FOX's games. When they're not busy jamming the Yankees and/or Red Sox down everyone's throat, they're torturing Midwest viewers by continually airing Cubs games, even though the Cubs are absolutely wretched. Maybe you'll get lucky this week and get that Braves-Nationals game instead. That oughta be a barnburner. No wonder the Blue Jays can't keep up. The Shea Hillenbrand thing happened. When it did, people talked about it and moved on. (Hillenbrand was DFAed by Toronto after he got into a heated argument with Jays manager John Gibbons that ended with Gibbons challenging Hillenbrand to a fight.) But when the manager and a player get into an argument that ends with the manager getting a bloody nose, people aren't going to be so quick to move on. The Blue Jays have problems. Last night, starting pitcher Ted Lilly didn't like being taken out of the game. He got into it with Gibbons, and the argument spilled into the tunnel between the dugout and clubhouse, where things apparently got physical. Gibbons ended up with a bloody nose, but said after the game that he talked things over with Lilly. Team president Paul Godfrey said he doesn't think either man will be disciplined. Huh? Your manager got into a physical altercation with a player - in a public setting of all places - and you don't think discipline is necessary? I'm not calling for a trade or a firing here, but to say that no discipline is necessary is a joke. Happy Madden-oliday! Today marks the national release of Madden NFL 07, the latest edition of EA Sports' signature video game. The popularity of video games, and even the popularity of sports video games, can be, in part, credited to this game. As usual, early reviews are mixed, though it's hard to imagine that the game will be a bigger disappointment than last year, when the only significant changes were the "passing cones" that were strangely conceived and somewhat difficult for the non-hardcare gamers (they were also optional, so you didn't have to master the concept) and the emphasis on the passing game (cover boy was Donovan McNabb). They are emphasizing the run this year, featuring Seattle running back Shaun Alexander on the cover. The major change is the ability to take control of the lead blocker on running plays. One of the minor changes, allowing QBs to scramble without taking down the passing icons (makes throwing on the run and evading the pass rush more effective) is similar to one made in the NCAA 07 game. I'm not going to tell you to go buy the game because I'm not sure I'm going to buy it yet. But chances are that most Madden junkies are going to buy the game, many of them today, whether I tell them to or not. (Comment on this)
Friday, August 18th, 2006
11:39 am	The Dodgers Have Me In A Personal Finance Catch 22! I love the Los Angeles Dodgers. Even though I now live in Orange County (home of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim), I grew up being a Dodger fan and will always be one. Ever since I can remember I have followed the Dodgers daily. So when I graduated college and had been working for a few years, I found two other guys who liked the Dodgers and we went in on 4 season tickets. We have had these tickets for 4 years now. This was a perfectly reasonable expense for a single guy! However, since I have gotten engaged, I tend to not use as many tickets and also give a lot of them away. The first few years that I had tickets, I probably went to 20-25 games a year. I have only been to about 6 or 7 games this year. The rest I have given away. Two years ago the Dodgers made the playoffs and we had to fork over some serious money to secure playoff tickets. The playoff tickets almost cost as much as the entire season did. The Dodgers were eliminated in the first round that year, so we got most of the money back, but it did take a few months. So just when I was about to write the Dodgers off this year, they have started playing the best baseball around. It's almost like they can't lose. And there arises the Catch-22. Here are the scenarios: The Dodgers continue to win and make the playoffs. I win as a lifelong fan. I lose as the guy who has to fork over the playoff tickets money that I haven't saved up for. The Dodgers stumble and don't make the playoffs. I lose as a lifelong fan. I win by not having to spend the money. I know this is very petty, but seriously, what would you hope for as a lifelong fan? (Comment on this)
Friday, August 11th, 2006
10:58 am	The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are idiots, part 2 It's not that goofy name, either. What's hard to believe is that an MLB team with serious aspirations, an owner willing to spend and a legitimate superstar (Guerrero) could have started the season with a more washed-up pair of players than the Angels did with Edgardo Alfonzo and Jeff Weaver. They spent over $16 million for the priviledge. Alfonzo got released after going 5-for-50 and Weaver -- who has been one of the whiniest players ever to play the game despite racking up an 81-97 record -- has been designated for assignment after going 3-10 with a 6.29 ERA, 18 HRs and an opposing batting average of 3.09. There's already speculation that the Cards and Dodgers are so desperate for pitching that they'll give Weaver a shot. (New Dodgers hotshot Chad Billingsley lost again on Sunday with Orlando Cabrera stealing home off him). What's good about this for the Giants? The best thing is that Jeff Weaver won't be in the Orange and Black this year. On the Fourth of July, I remain thankful not just for the enormous sacrificies of our founding fathers but also for the fact that I won't be forced to root for Jeff Weaver. Whatever the other defects are for the team, starting pitching doesn't look like one of them, particularly now that Morris is justifying his $9 million salary. Gwen Knapp of the SF Chron wrote on the Splash Blog that the radio crew mentioned that Morris' performance on Sunday may have been the turning point of the season, then added an interesting analysis that argues in favor of making a trade in the next few weeks. Morris' rebound from a horrible start has been the best development for the Giants in a long time. At this point, the team has two genuine stoppers, and as the trade deadline gets closer, that should put them in the buyers', not sellers', market. Well, truth is, Brian Sabean has never been much of a seller, not even last year, when the season fell apart so quickly. The difference this year is that there is reason other than the residual greatness in Barry Bonds to make this a go-for-it year.The starting pitchers, if they keep up their pace, make this Giants team a worthwhile investment when management starts looking at the trade market. It also doesn't hurt that Pedro Feliz and Omar Vizquel are mashing these days and Armando Benitez has stopped whining, though I'm sure the latter development is temporary. Feliz has now hit 4 HRs in the last 5 games, including tonight. He's 9th in the NL with 58 RBIs. (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 3rd, 2006
6:00 pm	The Hangover: Last Night In The AL East D-Rays 19, New York 6. Our Hangover feature takes on a new meaning today. Maybe you decided to play a little D-Rays drinking game yesterday as a way to warm-up for your Saturday night shenanigans, and decided to take a shot every time the Rays scored a run. Since the All-Star break, that is a game that would be safe for a recovering alcoholic. Well, if you did decide to play that game, you probably did not make it out Saturday night, you probably passed out in a pool of your drool and today you have tied for the worst hangover in the history of the D-Rays drinking game. As Rays fans, we can not help but feel snake-bitten since the break. The team entered the game 3-11 since the break and had the second worst batting average as well as the worst ERA in the major leagues over that span. They had just come off a game in which they were shutout 6-0 and managed only 2 hits. On Saturday they were playing their 2nd game of the series in Yankee stadium, a place the team has never fared well and were facing one of the great pitchers of all-time, in Randy Johnson. The game started off much the same way as every other game over the past few weeks. Randy Johnson retired the first 5 D-Rays he faced. In the midst of that stretch, the Derek Jeter and Jason Giambi hit back-to-back and belly-to-belly home runs, to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead. Then something strange happened...After the first 5 Rays were retired, the floodgates opened. Over the course of the next 7 innings, Devil Rays hitters went 17-31 (.548) and scored 19 runs. Tomas Perez tied the major league record, held by hundreds of people, by hitting 4 doubles in one game and was 5-5 overall. The 5 hits was more hits than Perez had in May (4) and more hits than he had in June (4). Hidden amongst the stellar hitting performance by the D-Rays, was another shaky performance by Jae Seo, who despite picking up his first win with the Rays, is in danger of losing his spot in the rotation. With J. P. Howell continuing to pitch well at AAA Durham, and Andrew Friedman on record as stating that he would like to see Howell pitching for the Rays this season, Seo looks like he would be the odd-man out at this point. Seo worked into the 6th inning and gave up 9 hits, 2 walks and 5 runs. He allowed 2 home runs in the 1st inning and struck out only 1. Not including his 2 inning relief appearance against the Marlins immediately after the Rays acquired Seo, he is now 1-5 in 6 starts with a 6.29 ERA. In 34.1 innings, he has surrendered 45 hits and 14 walks to only 10 strikeouts. Seo clearly does not have the same stuff he had last season with the New York Mets and it may be time to take him out of the rotation for the rest of this season. Give him the off-season to get his mechanics back in order and give him a shot at the 5th spot in the 2007 rotation. The game dropped the Yankees 1.5 games behind the Red Sox in the AL East and a half game behind the White Sox in the wild card race. So what could possibly be worse than taking a brutal beating by the lowly Devil Rays in your home park and losing ground in the playoff race? How about having to sit through all 9 innings of the blow out while sitting directly behind a group of greased-up, sober, Long Island guys at the Stadium for a bachelor party...ouch. Boston 7, Los Angeles Angels 6. For the love all things good and holy, WHY? Why do managers continue to pitch to Big Papi with the game on the line? We understand that there is an idiot savant batting behind Ortiz that knows only one thing...hitting baseballs very hard, but this is BIG PAPI! A manager could put all 25 players out in the field and a few in the stands and Ortiz would still find a way to win an important game. With the Spankees getting spanked all over Yankee stadium, the Red Sox won an important game to give themselves a bit of breathing room in the AL East. Surviving Grady summed it up the best. "Two words: Big Papi". Of course, the Soxaholix suggest their is a "bigger" reason for the heroics. Oakland 7, Toronto 4. The Jays lost to fall 6 games back as their playoff hopes are beginning to fade as well as their desire to add a bat to the lineup such as Julio Lugo. Chicago White Sox 13, Baltimore 11. The O's did not do the Yankees any favors. In fact we wouldn't put it past Peter Angelos and his disdain for the Yankees to...nah. (Comment on this)
Monday, July 31st, 2006
9:57 pm	Hidden Base Trick Inflames A's-Angels Rivalry Thursday night Frank Thomas socked a walk-off home run to lead the Oakland Athletics to a 7-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. This type of drama has been typical in recent years for these American League West adversaries. However, the Big Hurt’s blast was not the only development to infuriate the Angels on Thursday. The Halos were livid when Oakland pulled the hidden base trick during Orlando Cabrera’s at-bats. The Angels shortstop singled in the 5th and 7th innings to extend his streak of reaching base to 63 consecutive games. The streak is the longest in major league baseball since 1960, passing a 58-game stretch by Barry Bonds in 2003. Statistics on such streaks are incomplete before 1960, but the Elias Sports Bureau has Boston’s Ted Williams with the major league record at 84 straight games in 1949. Some may wonder how a record can be affirmed when statistics from that era are acknowledged to be incomplete. An Elias representative admitted, “Look, we’re praying that we don’t find some nobody who had more than 84. If we throw the name ‘Ted Williams’ out there, no one really questions it.” Since Cabrera doubled off Detroit’s Jeremy Bonderman on April 25, no opponent has managed to keep him off the bases for an entire game. However, the A’s devised a strategy to do just that. They put their plan into practice Thursday night whenever first base was unoccupied during a Cabrera at-bat. Oakland removed first base from the ground and hid it from Cabrera’s view, reasoning that he can’t reach base if he can’t find it. The strategy seemed to work. Cabrera’s two hits came when first base was occupied, so the A’s could not remove it without the runner noticing. He was retired on the other three occasions. In the first inning, Angels manager Mike Scioscia screamed to the umpires that A’s first baseman Dan Johnson had stashed first base under his uniform. When questioned by the crew, the ridiculously bulging Johnson responded, “Noooo... I’m not hiding first base. I’m just… on steroids! Better test me after the game!” The A’s gamesmanship was particularly brazen during Cabrera’s third inning at-bat. Oakland legend Rickey Henderson slid head-first into first base before pulling it out of the ground. Henderson held the base aloft while proclaiming, “I am the greatest base-stealer of all time!” Henderson then dashed off the field while announcing, “Rickey’s gonna take this bag to Cooperstown!” Amazingly, none of the umpires saw any of this. The Angels had suspected that their division rivals might use devious tactics to halt Cabrera’s streak. The Halos kept a watchful eye on Oakland catcher Jason Kendall, who had charged the mound against Los Angeles pitcher John Lackey in an earlier matchup this season. A crafty old catcher himself, Scioscia warned Cabrera that Kendall might try to tie his shoes together while he stood in the batter’s box. With the Angels distracted by Kendall, the A’s apparently felt that they could easily pull off the shenanigans at first base. Tonight the angry Angels will be particularly aware of the activities at first base. First base coach Alfredo Griffin will be on high alert, so the hidden base trick may not be available to the A’s. All-Star Oakland pitcher Barry Zito will have his hands full as he tries to stop Orlando Cabrera’s streak. Unlike the show on Fox, this version of “The O.C.” is not ready for a summer hiatus. (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 29th, 2006
4:50 pm	Achy Breaky Haircut Billy Ray Cyrus trying to pull of "The Keith"- kinda like "The Rachel" only this time its men who have streaked hair who are trying to look like Keith Urban. He's singing for a good cause so I should say something nice. But I'm too hot to think of anything. Billy Ray Cyrus sings a song in honor of disabled military veterans before the start of a baseball game between the Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Devil Rays Monday, July 24, 2006, in St. Petersburg, Fla. Photo: AP -LB (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 27th, 2006
10:46 am	The Wild Wild West In the National League, the wild card race features one team over .500 and a bunch of teams under. That isn’t how things will likely finish, but right now it has allowed a lot of mediocre teams to remain in it. That isn’t the case in the American League battle, where the Blue Jays at 4.5 back would be leading in the NL by a healthy three games. Heck in the AL West, the Rangers and Angels, back of the White Sox by nine games, would be neck and neck with the Reds if they played in the other league. As a result, there really aren’t any “long shots” so to speak in the American League with the exception of the Mariners, who sit 12.5 back of Chicago for the wild card. Still, even they remain within four games of the AL West leading A’s, despite having a record of 47-51. So rather than do a contender and long shot column, we’ll break it down division by division. Today the West gets the spotlight. It isn’t a pretty sight, where by virtue of overall mediocrity, even the aforementioned Mariners still have a chance. The anomaly of the rest of the league will still produce a playoff team however, so let’s see how the West could be won. Oakland Athletics 51-47, 1st place- One look at the Athletics runs per game and run allowed per game tells you all you need to know. Oakland ranks second best to Detroit in pitching and second worst to Tampa Bay in offense. In fact, with a ratio of 4.44 to 4.47 respectively, the A’s are averaging just three hundreds of a run more than they are allowing. That says .500 ball club, and the A’s haven’t been much better than that all year. So bats are what Billy Beane needs to focus on at the deadline. Could he try to spin Barry Zito into a couple of players? Might he try to pull off one of his three way trades to bring back a bat and some prospects? The A’s do have some prospects they could trade. Outside of that, shortstop Bobby Crosby, who’s miserable .644 OPS is killing Oakland’s chances this year, could be an intriguing piece. At 26 years old and injury prone the A’s might be willing to give him up in the right deal. Dan Johnson, who was recently demoted to AAA, is another young player someone might want to take a chance on in exchange for a veteran. Don’t be surprised if Beane pulls the trigger for someone like Reggie Sanders; a low cost player who can give the A’s a boost in production but is no real difference maker. In the end, the A’s will be watched, but mainly to see what they do with Zito. I don’t think he’ll be traded unless some team steps up with an overwhelming offer. Thus, A’s will remain the popular favorite in the West, whether or not they make a move. However, those who make that assumption could not be more wrong. Texas Rangers 51-48, .5 games back of A’s, 9 behind White Sox for wild card- Ameriquest Field has long been called the American League version of Coors and this year is no exception. Much like Coors is playing more pitcher friendly this year, so is Ameriquest, which actually has been neutral overall. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Rangers are seventh in both runs scored and runs allowed. Being middle of the pack in those two categories suggest the Rangers could go either way at the deadline. The likely emphasis will be on pitching since that is where Texas’ reputation is the weakest, but a hitter would cost less in this arms starved market. They’re probably not involved in either the Zito or Soriano hunt, but might be interested in a guy like Bobby Abreu. They’ve had issues in the outfield all season outside of Gary Matthews and would not shirk at taking on Abreu’s deal. Remember, this is the team that handed A-Rod 250 million dollars (and is still paying a good chunk of it). Since Ameriquest still is a homer happy park despite playing neutral overall, someone like Jake Westbrook would be the best fit pitching wise. Miguel Batistia, who has a GB/FB ratio of 1.97 this year, would be a more likely acquisition, though he is being hotly pursued by a number of teams. The Rangers run differential is the best in the division, so in fact, they probably should be the favorites over the A’s if the teams stand pat. If they can get a ground ball pitcher in there, and they have the prospects in Jason Botts and John Danks to do it, then the Rangers will have set themselves up in prime position to win the West. If they can get a bat and an arm, they actually have a shot at the American League too. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 50-48, 1 game back of A’s, 9.5 back of White Sox- Outside of the Rangers, the American League West teams can be summed up with this description; solid pitching, lousy hitting. The Angels offense has struggled through veterans like Tim Salmon and Garrett Anderson hanging on too long while youngsters Casey Kotchman and Dallas McPherson have struggled with consistencies and injuries. Therefore the Angels need a bat, plain and simple. They have the chips to get a Soriano or Abreu with their solid farm system. The Phillies might be a good choice since they probably wouldn’t ask for Jered Weaver, given his propensity for fly balls. The Angels could also go the route of the cheaper 3rd outfield type, though with their offense they’d likely need more than that if they want to seriously contend. The question with the Angels should be how much are they willing to gamble for this season. There are lot of appealing players on their team they could deal, but for someone like Soriano, such a move could set them back a couple of years if things don’t pan out. Since the Angels are a mix of young players and aging veterans, they probably would be wise in actually trying to sell at the deadline. Seattle Mariners- 47-51, 4 back of A’s, 12.5 back of White Sox- Hanging on by a thread, the Mariners might have stalled off the reaper with victories over the Red Sox on Saturday and Sunday. They too have lackluster hitting to go with solid pitching, but they likely need a pitcher to stay competitive. Why are they different? Because their pitching has held it together by virtue of pitching at Safeco, outside of Felix Hernandez, who should continue to improve as the year goes on. Gil Meche has decent peripherals and Jarrod Washburn is an okay third or fourth starter. But neither is a top of the rotation guy that slots in well behind Hernandez, who also isn’t being treated as an ace yet. So a pitcher that can replace Joel Piniero or Jamie Moyer (especially on the road) would be a great help to their playoff chances. One can't give away road starts when you're already behind in the race. Meanwhile the lineup doesn’t need that much work. Richie Sexson’s career numbers indicate a turnaround is in order. Carl Everett isn’t a particularly good DH, but an upgrade there shouldn’t cost much. Of course, they’re rumored to be after Soriano. It’s not certain what the Mariners would have to give up to get him, but unless Hernandez is involved (and he shouldn’t be), it’s doubtful they could match a team like the Angels or Tigers in terms of prospects. And considering where the Mariners are, they probably shouldn’t be giving up any solid young prospects for a rental. Before the season, I said the Mariners would be around .500. That’s exactly how they’ve played so far. In this division that’s enough to stay competitive. But this is not a good baseball team and one move will not make them a contender. The Mariners should sit back, deal a veteran or two and get ready for 2007. However, indications are that is not their current plan. We shall see. That’s the AL West, the weak sister of the league. Tomorrow it’s on to the surprising two team race that is about to become three in the AL Central. (Comment on this)