The Manager is an interesting position to contemplate. At the surface, the Manager's duties are to decide the starting lineup including pitcher, handle in-game decisions such as players substitutions and calls to the bullpen, and coordinate in-game plays like the sacrifice bunt and the Hit and Run. Beyond that, the Manager has to deal with player anomalies and extenuating circumstances. When contemplating a Manager's skill, both of these elements have to be analyzed.
Many statistical analysts are under the opinion that one's value as a Manager is measured by how few runs you cost your team. Analysts like those at Baseball Prospectus tend to believe that special plays like the Sacrifice Bunt are overused and are almost always used in the wrong situation. By this measure, a good Manager is one who doesn't try to get tricky too often and just lets his players play. This philosophy is often held up by players as well, who believe the "let the players play" style allows players to feel more free and comfortable. Dusty Baker is notoriously bad at this in the statistical sphere, while Ted Williams was quite good.
The intangible aspect to Managing is the handling of players. Alfonso Soriano wants to bat leadoff, and often times he bats poorly when put out of position. The New York Yankees are constantly being stifled and second guessed by a brutal New York Media. These issues are the kind of thing that Managers have to deal with so their players won't have to. Joe Torre is supposedly very good at this.
The main reason I bring this up is Lou Piniella. Piniella at the moment has to face the aforementioned Soriano question (at least he will when Soriano returns from today's Disabled List stint.) Soriano went 0-8 in the #2 spot after two games and Piniella decided to move him into the Leadoff Spot, where Soriano has always wanted to bat. Soriano has great speed, but a career .326 On Base Percentage leaves something to be desired. Soriano is a perfect candidate for the Cleanup role, really. He has great power, and can leadoff more 2nd innings if the 1-2-3 batters go down. He wants to bat in the leadoff spot in order to try and prove he can get back to his old 40 stolen base form.
Piniella here has to juggle the competing interests here. Soriano is better suited in spots where he can get RBIs, and use his power to hit other runners in. At the same time, Piniella has to consider whether or not Soriano has a real emotional tie to the leadoff spot. If Soriano actually will bat better in the leadoff spot because he believes he can, how much does that warrant batting him in an inferior spot?
I'm curious as to what value General Managers place on the balance of these things. How much can a person rely on the intangibles while at the same time accepting one's poor statistical decisions, or vice versa? How good can a manager be at statistical decisions if his players run rampant and throw temper tantrums all the time?
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
The Harden Dilemma
As the A's have now taken their hot streak to winning 6 of their last 7 games, some A's fans found themselves looking for the proverbial arm pinch to keep them on earth. That came late last week with Rich Harden being put on the Disabled List, making this season feel a little bit more like home.
What do the A's do with Rich Harden? If you don't know, Rich Harden is the #2 starter for the A's. He's gifted with four great pitches: A century fastball, plus changeup, slider, and a splitter that is so erratic at the end it's basically unpredictable. Harden's downfall is that he's very easily injured due to his moderate frame and overexpense in his throwing motion. He's got the stuff to be amazing, but he just hasn't proven any longevity. The debate I'd like to explore here is whether or not to move Harden to the bullpen.
On one hand you have Rich Harden, the amazing pitcher who historically hasn't been able to handle starting. The obvious solution to a guy who has dominating stuff but can only do it for a few innings is to make them close. Mariano Rivera, Francisco Rodriguez, and Joe Nathan are all dominating pitchers that can't start. If the A's could even have Harden for a few innings a week as a lights out closer, that's obviously better than having him start 7-8 games a year in between disabled list visits.
On the other hand, you have what might be a lot of wasted talent. Most dominating closers can get by with one or two pitches. If Harden were to move to the bullpen, he would probably use is Fastball and Changeup in order to reduce the strain on his arm, since you don't need to rely on variety to get the same guys out three or four times a game. Harden has the stuff to strike guys out that many times since he has so many tools to go too in pressure situations. If somehow he could stay healthy, then he would be one of the more dominating pitchers in the league, if not Hall of Fame caliber. A top notch starter is more valuable than a top notch reliever, due to the longevity and reliability, not to mention in a loaded bullpen like the A's with a sketchy starting rotation.
The other added dimension is how he may be best marketable. I hate to talk about players in terms of commodities, but if the A's are continuing their youth movement, then Harden could fetch a lot of prospects. As a closer, he'd fetch probably a package similar to the Swisher deal. If he were a 30 start-pitcher, he'd get something better than Haren and Swisher put together. Beane has to think about how best to look to the future.
At what point does Beane stop the gamble? Harden has said he prefers starting to the bullpen, but the bullpen to the disabled list. I think we'd all like to see as much Harden as we can, even if that means two pitch-bullpen Harden. It's sad to see him have to hit the list so much and hear people scoff at him as a never-was, but A's fans like to hold on to that glimmer of hope that somewhere in that fragile frame we have the next Christy Mathewson.
There isn't a right answer to this question unfortunately, but I think that this is the last season Harden has to prove himself as a starter. The rebuilding plan probably won't be in full effect until at least next year, so he's got time to be marketable. Huston Street's contract is up this year, so if the A's can't sign him to a longer contract, they'll need an heir to his throne if they don't like anyone in the bullpen now. Harden could take next offseason to make the switch and still have half a season to be traded to another team if the A's want to make it so. This would be the Kerry Wood route, and we'll see for ourselves how this works with the Cubs. Otherwise he may end up a Mark Prior--ridiculous stuff, never a chance to show it.
What do the A's do with Rich Harden? If you don't know, Rich Harden is the #2 starter for the A's. He's gifted with four great pitches: A century fastball, plus changeup, slider, and a splitter that is so erratic at the end it's basically unpredictable. Harden's downfall is that he's very easily injured due to his moderate frame and overexpense in his throwing motion. He's got the stuff to be amazing, but he just hasn't proven any longevity. The debate I'd like to explore here is whether or not to move Harden to the bullpen.
On one hand you have Rich Harden, the amazing pitcher who historically hasn't been able to handle starting. The obvious solution to a guy who has dominating stuff but can only do it for a few innings is to make them close. Mariano Rivera, Francisco Rodriguez, and Joe Nathan are all dominating pitchers that can't start. If the A's could even have Harden for a few innings a week as a lights out closer, that's obviously better than having him start 7-8 games a year in between disabled list visits.
On the other hand, you have what might be a lot of wasted talent. Most dominating closers can get by with one or two pitches. If Harden were to move to the bullpen, he would probably use is Fastball and Changeup in order to reduce the strain on his arm, since you don't need to rely on variety to get the same guys out three or four times a game. Harden has the stuff to strike guys out that many times since he has so many tools to go too in pressure situations. If somehow he could stay healthy, then he would be one of the more dominating pitchers in the league, if not Hall of Fame caliber. A top notch starter is more valuable than a top notch reliever, due to the longevity and reliability, not to mention in a loaded bullpen like the A's with a sketchy starting rotation.
The other added dimension is how he may be best marketable. I hate to talk about players in terms of commodities, but if the A's are continuing their youth movement, then Harden could fetch a lot of prospects. As a closer, he'd fetch probably a package similar to the Swisher deal. If he were a 30 start-pitcher, he'd get something better than Haren and Swisher put together. Beane has to think about how best to look to the future.
At what point does Beane stop the gamble? Harden has said he prefers starting to the bullpen, but the bullpen to the disabled list. I think we'd all like to see as much Harden as we can, even if that means two pitch-bullpen Harden. It's sad to see him have to hit the list so much and hear people scoff at him as a never-was, but A's fans like to hold on to that glimmer of hope that somewhere in that fragile frame we have the next Christy Mathewson.
There isn't a right answer to this question unfortunately, but I think that this is the last season Harden has to prove himself as a starter. The rebuilding plan probably won't be in full effect until at least next year, so he's got time to be marketable. Huston Street's contract is up this year, so if the A's can't sign him to a longer contract, they'll need an heir to his throne if they don't like anyone in the bullpen now. Harden could take next offseason to make the switch and still have half a season to be traded to another team if the A's want to make it so. This would be the Kerry Wood route, and we'll see for ourselves how this works with the Cubs. Otherwise he may end up a Mark Prior--ridiculous stuff, never a chance to show it.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
On Eckstein
Spring Cleaning is underway with the A's sweeping the Blue Jays in three very close games, and then taking two from the Indians at time of writing. One thing that ran through my mind through the games with the Jays was David Eckstein, the shortstop for the Blue Jays. He's been called "pesky," "scrappy," "gritty" and many other backhanded compliments, and believe it or not he is a very polarizing figure.
David Eckstein plays every second like there's a gun to his head. He's a decent fielder at shortstop -- the hardest offensive position besides catcher and pitcher, but for different reasons. Shortstop requires immense athleticism, and Eckstein provides it. Furthermore, you'll often see him diving head first into 1st base to avoid a tag, and other such feats. This is where Eckstein gets his "scrappy" label. Eckstein isn't overpowering with his 5'6 170lb frame, and while he does have solid speed to the tune of averaging 18 SB per season (though this has deteriorated over the last three seasons,) he relies on his compact-contact swing to put him in a position to get him on base through this athleticism.
This 100% approach makes him a lovable figure in the eyes of sports writers and fans. Baseball has the interesting element of seeming accessible to the average human being. The average human can'tbox out a 7 foot Yao Ming to get the rebound, or go pound for pound against Warren Sapp at the line of scrimmage, and they don't believe they can. David Eckstein though, with his bunt singles, solid speed and good technique don't seem all that otherworldly though. People root for Eckstein because they want to cling to the idea that if we work hard enough, we can achieve anything. In a baseball world dominated by steroids, Eckstein is the new version of the American Dream. He and Shaun White are probably the two figures in sports that would demoralize me the most if they tested positive for 'roids.
Some people don't like him though. The professional writers over at www.firejoemorgan.com tend to pick on him. Some people tend to think that this "grit," if you will, that Eckstein possesses is some sort of mythical Baseball-turbo-juice that allows Eckstein to shine but can't be mathematically quantified. Some players get better through doping; Eckstein just pulls something extra out of the adrenaline vault. Some of the more statistically inclined fans think that this force is overrated since there exists no statistics to prove it. They see Eckstein as having a sub-par On Base Percentage to bat leadoff, and his reputation as clutch (also not yet mathematically proven) inflates his reputation.
While there is some merit to this disbelief, nobody would argue that just because people haven't mathematically quantified it, that means it doesn't exist. I think the David Eckstein-esque argument that proves to serve up the most heated debates between more traditional writers and Sports Geeks. Eckstein is fun to watch, hard working, and good at what he does for the most part, yet Sports Geeks tend to scoff a bit whenever the essence of "grit" is conjured up. I think there needs to be compromise on both sides. Eckstein is, in reality, an extremely talented baseball player. Anyone who reaches the Major Leagues is more talented than any normal fan, and Eckstein is notable even amongst this class (multiple times an All-Star.) While this ability does come in large part from hard work, it doesn't come from the Baseball Gods shining upon him by bestowing "scrappiness" upon him.
David Eckstein is talented, skilled, and good. Can't we just give him credit for that without having to explain it with the "gritty" and "pesky" labels?
David Eckstein plays every second like there's a gun to his head. He's a decent fielder at shortstop -- the hardest offensive position besides catcher and pitcher, but for different reasons. Shortstop requires immense athleticism, and Eckstein provides it. Furthermore, you'll often see him diving head first into 1st base to avoid a tag, and other such feats. This is where Eckstein gets his "scrappy" label. Eckstein isn't overpowering with his 5'6 170lb frame, and while he does have solid speed to the tune of averaging 18 SB per season (though this has deteriorated over the last three seasons,) he relies on his compact-contact swing to put him in a position to get him on base through this athleticism.
This 100% approach makes him a lovable figure in the eyes of sports writers and fans. Baseball has the interesting element of seeming accessible to the average human being. The average human can'tbox out a 7 foot Yao Ming to get the rebound, or go pound for pound against Warren Sapp at the line of scrimmage, and they don't believe they can. David Eckstein though, with his bunt singles, solid speed and good technique don't seem all that otherworldly though. People root for Eckstein because they want to cling to the idea that if we work hard enough, we can achieve anything. In a baseball world dominated by steroids, Eckstein is the new version of the American Dream. He and Shaun White are probably the two figures in sports that would demoralize me the most if they tested positive for 'roids.
Some people don't like him though. The professional writers over at www.firejoemorgan.com tend to pick on him. Some people tend to think that this "grit," if you will, that Eckstein possesses is some sort of mythical Baseball-turbo-juice that allows Eckstein to shine but can't be mathematically quantified. Some players get better through doping; Eckstein just pulls something extra out of the adrenaline vault. Some of the more statistically inclined fans think that this force is overrated since there exists no statistics to prove it. They see Eckstein as having a sub-par On Base Percentage to bat leadoff, and his reputation as clutch (also not yet mathematically proven) inflates his reputation.
While there is some merit to this disbelief, nobody would argue that just because people haven't mathematically quantified it, that means it doesn't exist. I think the David Eckstein-esque argument that proves to serve up the most heated debates between more traditional writers and Sports Geeks. Eckstein is fun to watch, hard working, and good at what he does for the most part, yet Sports Geeks tend to scoff a bit whenever the essence of "grit" is conjured up. I think there needs to be compromise on both sides. Eckstein is, in reality, an extremely talented baseball player. Anyone who reaches the Major Leagues is more talented than any normal fan, and Eckstein is notable even amongst this class (multiple times an All-Star.) While this ability does come in large part from hard work, it doesn't come from the Baseball Gods shining upon him by bestowing "scrappiness" upon him.
David Eckstein is talented, skilled, and good. Can't we just give him credit for that without having to explain it with the "gritty" and "pesky" labels?
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
A's thoughts
It's been an interesting couple of days when the A's play the Jays, not at the bay, but on a day where they pay to say away to D-J...I'll stop now.
1) Chad Gaudin is on his way back, but he's not there yet. He had flashes of great form--striking out Rios, Wells, and Thomas on identical great sliders was great to watch, but seeing Aaron Hill punt that same slider over the left field fence was bad. Wells took him yard too for 3 runs in the first as he struggled early. After the first few innings, he at least knew what he was doing. He looked like he threw his pitches in the appropriate counts, and his out-pitch slider was in command. He did throw a couple juicy ones, but thankfully AJ Burnett did the same.
SUPER BONUS SECTION: Man, AJ Burnett is one mean looking fellow. He reminds me of John Gruden, the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and former coach of the Raiders. When Lyle Overbay (1st baseman for the Jays) took a putout unassisted instead of flipping it to Burnett, I thought someone's face was going to get bitten off. Remind me not to cross him.
2) The Rotation is going down...fast. Harden skipped a start and is now doubtful for Sunday. Duchscherer is on the 15 day disabled list. Greg Smith performed rather well today, and it's probably good enough to keep him in the Duke's spot for now. If Harden goes down, the A's will probably go with Dallas Braden or Lenny DiNardo to replace him. Braden has a bit more upside, and could use work getting his changeup working against Major League Hitters. DiNardo is a bit more established, but the A's are fearful of his second half, when the entire League figured him out and his ERA skyrocketed. I'm not too worried about Duke--he wasn't a key piece of the rotation and the A's have arms in AA that can at least provide a positive VORP alternative, but Harden worries me. The A's really need Harden to at least provide 25 starts to stand a chance, and this is pretty early to already be suffering stiffness.
3) The Bats are picking up, although its the same ones. Sweeney and Suzuki have looked outstanding lately, and I'm pleased with them as well as Mark Ellis. Travis Buck has remembered how to put em where they aint, and the recent trend of extra base hits puts me a bit more at ease. Jack Cust is still in a funk, and he's a key provider of pop in this lineup, but we can expect him to be a bit streaky as part of his nature.
4) The Bullpen excites me more and more with every day. Huston Street settled in, recording two no-home-run saves in a row. Foulke looks like he's returned to form, and will dual with Embree for a Righty/Lefty combo of setup men. Combining those three with Santiago Casilla and Andrew Brown whom I have full confidence in as well as Fernando Hernandez who looked solid today gives me a lot of confidence if our starters can give six quality innings.
On another note, the Giants have taken two dramatic games in a row, and Jonathan Sanchez was 7/13/77 of New York on the mound today. They're close, but these heart pounding games are the kind of wins that will be typical para Los Gigantes. If the Giants are going to win games consistently this season, it will be through good pitching, good defense, and a lot of clutch plays in the big moments (Nice work, Freddy).
1) Chad Gaudin is on his way back, but he's not there yet. He had flashes of great form--striking out Rios, Wells, and Thomas on identical great sliders was great to watch, but seeing Aaron Hill punt that same slider over the left field fence was bad. Wells took him yard too for 3 runs in the first as he struggled early. After the first few innings, he at least knew what he was doing. He looked like he threw his pitches in the appropriate counts, and his out-pitch slider was in command. He did throw a couple juicy ones, but thankfully AJ Burnett did the same.
SUPER BONUS SECTION: Man, AJ Burnett is one mean looking fellow. He reminds me of John Gruden, the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and former coach of the Raiders. When Lyle Overbay (1st baseman for the Jays) took a putout unassisted instead of flipping it to Burnett, I thought someone's face was going to get bitten off. Remind me not to cross him.
2) The Rotation is going down...fast. Harden skipped a start and is now doubtful for Sunday. Duchscherer is on the 15 day disabled list. Greg Smith performed rather well today, and it's probably good enough to keep him in the Duke's spot for now. If Harden goes down, the A's will probably go with Dallas Braden or Lenny DiNardo to replace him. Braden has a bit more upside, and could use work getting his changeup working against Major League Hitters. DiNardo is a bit more established, but the A's are fearful of his second half, when the entire League figured him out and his ERA skyrocketed. I'm not too worried about Duke--he wasn't a key piece of the rotation and the A's have arms in AA that can at least provide a positive VORP alternative, but Harden worries me. The A's really need Harden to at least provide 25 starts to stand a chance, and this is pretty early to already be suffering stiffness.
3) The Bats are picking up, although its the same ones. Sweeney and Suzuki have looked outstanding lately, and I'm pleased with them as well as Mark Ellis. Travis Buck has remembered how to put em where they aint, and the recent trend of extra base hits puts me a bit more at ease. Jack Cust is still in a funk, and he's a key provider of pop in this lineup, but we can expect him to be a bit streaky as part of his nature.
4) The Bullpen excites me more and more with every day. Huston Street settled in, recording two no-home-run saves in a row. Foulke looks like he's returned to form, and will dual with Embree for a Righty/Lefty combo of setup men. Combining those three with Santiago Casilla and Andrew Brown whom I have full confidence in as well as Fernando Hernandez who looked solid today gives me a lot of confidence if our starters can give six quality innings.
On another note, the Giants have taken two dramatic games in a row, and Jonathan Sanchez was 7/13/77 of New York on the mound today. They're close, but these heart pounding games are the kind of wins that will be typical para Los Gigantes. If the Giants are going to win games consistently this season, it will be through good pitching, good defense, and a lot of clutch plays in the big moments (Nice work, Freddy).
Monday, April 7, 2008
The San Francisco Conundrum
The San Francisco have even more trouble on their hands than their 1-6 record would indicate. The Giants fans have made their allegiances clear--they were with Barry. Check out this excerpt from an article on the Giants website, as reported by Chris Haft.
"SAN FRANCISCO -- Opening Day is always a celebration, but the festive mood at AT&T Park began evaporating even before the Giants' 8-4 loss to the San Diego Padres began.
I've often talked among friends about the dualistic nature of San Francisco fans. There are Giants fans who are among the traditional encampments. First there is the die-hard fan, who will always support the team no matter what (even in the 90 loss seasons.) There's the Sports Geeky fans who know the team will be bad, but love Barry cause he's the king of On Base Percentage among other things. Yet San Francisco also has a very large encampment of Barry Fans. These people have grown up, or at least become so ingrained with the leadership of Barry Bonds that the sudden broadside of a team without him has thrown them into a state of shock. These fans are suddenly coming to grips with the fact that this lineup is very old, and hardly anybody in the farm system is superstar caliber (save Angel Villanova, but only the most knowledgeable fans know of the 18 year old High-A player.)
These aren't new facts though. A lot of people who follow the Giants have long pointed out the fact that the ownership hasn't made moves to win championships by improving weak points, or at least haven't made the right ones. The Barry Homers though have gleefully ignored this fact because of that glorious 2002 season when they won the pennant, and the fact that anything is possible if Barry is batting cleanup.
This team isn't the 2002 Giants though. This is a team so unprepared for injuries that, in light of injuries to Shortstop Omar Vizquel and utilityman Kevin Frandsen, their best option for Shortstop is Brian Bocock, who last year had a subpar (.220/.293/.328) year at High A ball. This is a team so oblivious to its inability to contend that it insists on starting Dave Roberts in Left Field instead of giving youngsters Rajai Davis, Fred Lewis, or Nate Schierholtz more opportunities to develop at the big league level.
Finally, this is a team so incognizant of the impact Barry had on them as a team and its fans that it has basically erased his image from their stadium (I could reference a ton of articles, but I'll go with this one) His image and any mention of his home run record are nowhere to be found. I understand that the team wants to turn over a new leaf per se, but the Giants' Front Office Brass doesn't seem to understand how they are alienating their fans by doing this. Not only do they give the fans a sub par team to face the season, but this move almost seems like a slap in the face. It's a proverbial "This is our team, deal with it. No Barry. Don't like it? We don't care."
Such blatant disregard for the opinions of fans is disconcerting. The fact of the matter is that profiting on a baseball team is ridiculously easy in business terms. Perhaps the Giants Front Office realizes this, and much like the Marlins run their operation, they don't particularly care if their team is poor and has no drawing power for a few years--people will still attend, if only to boo.
"SAN FRANCISCO -- Opening Day is always a celebration, but the festive mood at AT&T Park began evaporating even before the Giants' 8-4 loss to the San Diego Padres began.
Barry Zito, the Giants' $126 million pitcher who owns an 0-2 record with a 6.30 ERA, was booed during pregame introductions. The hooting resumed when third baseman Jose Castillo misplayed Scott Hairston's grounder during San Diego's three-run third inning, and surfaced intermittently while Padres right-hander Greg Maddux was retiring 19 of the final 20 hitters he faced. The catcalls rang out for the final time in the ninth inning as the Padres scored twice off Brian Wilson."
The San Francisco Faithful are clearly displeased with the Giants' 1-6 start against the Dodgers, Brewers, and now Padres. Receiving this kind of treatment in one's home opener is a terrible harbinger of things to come. This should be a very interesting season to examine in terms of how the fan base will react. This is their first season in a long time without Barry Bonds, and while this isn't the first time they've been abysmally poor, it is the first time they don't have Barry to fall back on to draw fans.I've often talked among friends about the dualistic nature of San Francisco fans. There are Giants fans who are among the traditional encampments. First there is the die-hard fan, who will always support the team no matter what (even in the 90 loss seasons.) There's the Sports Geeky fans who know the team will be bad, but love Barry cause he's the king of On Base Percentage among other things. Yet San Francisco also has a very large encampment of Barry Fans. These people have grown up, or at least become so ingrained with the leadership of Barry Bonds that the sudden broadside of a team without him has thrown them into a state of shock. These fans are suddenly coming to grips with the fact that this lineup is very old, and hardly anybody in the farm system is superstar caliber (save Angel Villanova, but only the most knowledgeable fans know of the 18 year old High-A player.)
These aren't new facts though. A lot of people who follow the Giants have long pointed out the fact that the ownership hasn't made moves to win championships by improving weak points, or at least haven't made the right ones. The Barry Homers though have gleefully ignored this fact because of that glorious 2002 season when they won the pennant, and the fact that anything is possible if Barry is batting cleanup.
This team isn't the 2002 Giants though. This is a team so unprepared for injuries that, in light of injuries to Shortstop Omar Vizquel and utilityman Kevin Frandsen, their best option for Shortstop is Brian Bocock, who last year had a subpar (.220/.293/.328) year at High A ball. This is a team so oblivious to its inability to contend that it insists on starting Dave Roberts in Left Field instead of giving youngsters Rajai Davis, Fred Lewis, or Nate Schierholtz more opportunities to develop at the big league level.
Finally, this is a team so incognizant of the impact Barry had on them as a team and its fans that it has basically erased his image from their stadium (I could reference a ton of articles, but I'll go with this one) His image and any mention of his home run record are nowhere to be found. I understand that the team wants to turn over a new leaf per se, but the Giants' Front Office Brass doesn't seem to understand how they are alienating their fans by doing this. Not only do they give the fans a sub par team to face the season, but this move almost seems like a slap in the face. It's a proverbial "This is our team, deal with it. No Barry. Don't like it? We don't care."
Such blatant disregard for the opinions of fans is disconcerting. The fact of the matter is that profiting on a baseball team is ridiculously easy in business terms. Perhaps the Giants Front Office realizes this, and much like the Marlins run their operation, they don't particularly care if their team is poor and has no drawing power for a few years--people will still attend, if only to boo.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Opening Impressions on the A's
Your Oakland Athletics have finally finished their opening series (plural?) with the Red Sox, with a 1-3 record. It's logical at this point to begin bracing one's self for a long year, but let's look at some of the big factors piece by piece.
1) Huston Street isn't at his top form yet. He's given up home runs in both appearances so far, and he really needs to come to grips with his slider. Street needs to be at his top form for both plans: If the A's are going to go for it on the off chance the Angels never recover from blows to their rotation, Street needs to be our go to man for the postseason. Likewise, if we are sticking with Codename: 2010, Street needs to keep his trade value up for Beane to net some good prospects for him and allow Joey Devine to move into the pen and get some big league work in. I'm not too worried here--Street has always had a pretty high blown save count. The A's will rely on him a lot this year though, with the offense being somewhat subpar, the games will be close.
2) I'm not sure what to make of the offense yet, but my gut isn't agreeing with my decision nonetheless. The team leaders right now in hitting are Kurt Suzuki, Bobby Crosby and Jack Hannahan. While I'm thrilled that the three of them are producing, I'm wondering where everybody else is. Buck mentioned in an article on the A's website said. "It's everything -- my whole body, from my feet to my head. But seeing and identifying the problem, that's a step in the right direction." That concerns me more than anything. I would hope these things would be worked out in Spring Training, but Buck had a good second half last year. Regardless, I'd like to see him and the others maintain some regularity in their hitting so as to facilitate Beane's aforementioned decision.
3) Rich Harden looks good. I can't say enough about how key this is to the whole process, and even though he's been limited in his innings (good move Geren,) I like what I see. Sports Illustrated's recent Baseball Preview toyed around with the idea of making Harden a Sunday Starter, but I think the depth of the bullpen is more suited to allowing Harden to stick to a low inning plan rather than a fewer starts plan. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this isn't the baseball gods toying with us.
4) The Angels look good, unfortunately. Other than the game against the Twins where they had trouble producing, they look really solid. Garland and Saunders were both lights out in their opening performances, and their offense has four members who out produce our best guy. It's intimidating to compare outfields with them, when their pinch runner (Reggie Willits) would be a automatic starter on the A's.
As I've stated before--it's going to be a hard April. The A's schedule is very rough (4 against the Red Sox, 6 against the Indians, etc.) and the A's are still trying to see what works with all of its cogs in new sprockets. Duchscherer is on the hill tonight, and I'm hoping that his wide array of breaking stuff will be able to keep guys off balance for a whole game. His fastball is only upper 80's, so their is the chance that guys will figure him out when they come around to their 3rd matchup. Considering the fact that he's being converted from a reliever and may have stamina issues, the 6th inning will be the most pivotal for him.
1) Huston Street isn't at his top form yet. He's given up home runs in both appearances so far, and he really needs to come to grips with his slider. Street needs to be at his top form for both plans: If the A's are going to go for it on the off chance the Angels never recover from blows to their rotation, Street needs to be our go to man for the postseason. Likewise, if we are sticking with Codename: 2010, Street needs to keep his trade value up for Beane to net some good prospects for him and allow Joey Devine to move into the pen and get some big league work in. I'm not too worried here--Street has always had a pretty high blown save count. The A's will rely on him a lot this year though, with the offense being somewhat subpar, the games will be close.
2) I'm not sure what to make of the offense yet, but my gut isn't agreeing with my decision nonetheless. The team leaders right now in hitting are Kurt Suzuki, Bobby Crosby and Jack Hannahan. While I'm thrilled that the three of them are producing, I'm wondering where everybody else is. Buck mentioned in an article on the A's website said. "It's everything -- my whole body, from my feet to my head. But seeing and identifying the problem, that's a step in the right direction." That concerns me more than anything. I would hope these things would be worked out in Spring Training, but Buck had a good second half last year. Regardless, I'd like to see him and the others maintain some regularity in their hitting so as to facilitate Beane's aforementioned decision.
3) Rich Harden looks good. I can't say enough about how key this is to the whole process, and even though he's been limited in his innings (good move Geren,) I like what I see. Sports Illustrated's recent Baseball Preview toyed around with the idea of making Harden a Sunday Starter, but I think the depth of the bullpen is more suited to allowing Harden to stick to a low inning plan rather than a fewer starts plan. Let's keep our fingers crossed that this isn't the baseball gods toying with us.
4) The Angels look good, unfortunately. Other than the game against the Twins where they had trouble producing, they look really solid. Garland and Saunders were both lights out in their opening performances, and their offense has four members who out produce our best guy. It's intimidating to compare outfields with them, when their pinch runner (Reggie Willits) would be a automatic starter on the A's.
As I've stated before--it's going to be a hard April. The A's schedule is very rough (4 against the Red Sox, 6 against the Indians, etc.) and the A's are still trying to see what works with all of its cogs in new sprockets. Duchscherer is on the hill tonight, and I'm hoping that his wide array of breaking stuff will be able to keep guys off balance for a whole game. His fastball is only upper 80's, so their is the chance that guys will figure him out when they come around to their 3rd matchup. Considering the fact that he's being converted from a reliever and may have stamina issues, the 6th inning will be the most pivotal for him.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
A's overhauls
So there was big news today that Billy Beane, having decided that the health of Eric Chavez was too much for this team, decided to do all it took to make this team ready to compete.:
1. He traded Joe Blanton to the Astros for Miguel Tejada.
2. He then made a phone call and traded Huston Street to the Yankees for Jason Giambi.
3. Putting the touches on a long standing deal, he dealt Rich Harden to the Orioles for Ramon Hernandez.
4. Gutting the Farm System, he sent Carlos Gonzalez, Gio Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos, and Ryan Sweeney to the Giants for Barry Zito.
5. Mark Ellis was sent to the Cardinals for Jason Isringhausen.
6. Chad Gaudin, Justin Duchscherer, Emil Brown, and Cash Considerations were sent to the Braves for Tim Hudson.
7. Jack Cust was offered to the Yankees for Johnny Damon, who also wanted Kurt Suzuki, and the A's obliged.
8. Bobby Crosby, Mike Sweeney, Brooks Conrad, and Andrew Brown were sent to the ChiSox for Jermaine Dye.
9. Free Agents Jeremy Giambi and Terrence Long to 2 year deals.
10. After Bob Geren promptly stormed out in frustration, Art Howe was hired as the interim manager.
Beane was quoted as saying after the frenzy was done saying "Hey, let's face it, this is a weak division. I know what I'm doing here--I do it all the time. These signings will put us over the other teams in the league, and we will win baseball games."
When asked about how he will deal with the overwhelmingly large payroll boost he'll need to pay these players, Beane quipped "Well, we've been sort of saving money up over the years. People think we're a small market team, but it's sort of like saving up one's allowance for a Nintendo Wii. We haven't bought any big players for a while, so this is our proverbial Nintendo Wii."
The "Nintendo Wii" philosophy has drawn a lot of criticism among the community. Baseball Prospectus Joe Sheehan claimed that "This is exactly the kind of statistical know-how and surprise that makes Beane the best in the game. Whereas he used to win by putting value on undervalued guys, now he'll win by putting value on old men, who are now as undervalued as fat guys were in 2002."
Scouts are against it. Joe Morgan was quoted on his telecast last night as saying "Billy Beane wrote the book on idiocy. Moneyball? More like "Dummyball!" While I do like all of these old men and will continue to support them in all of my telecasts, Billy Beane's book is the single stupidest thing I haven't read."
Ironically, Micheal Lewis recently began work on his new book "Dummyball: The Art of Making Everyone else think they're Dumb in an Unfair Game," which is planned for release early next year after the A's win their inevitable World Series ring.
The Giambi brothers, after bumping heads and cheering upon seeing eachother in today's lineup, stated that "This is the greatest thing to happen to us since ster....ility. We sure do love sterility when being injected with completely legal B12 Vitamins to help our careers. Yup. Go A's."
It's the opinion of this blogger that Beane seems to have done it again--We're once again in a position to win the Championship thanks to Billy. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go buy season tickets in the hopes that we'll have a payroll to keep these guys around for a few years while they play from the Geriatric Ward.
1. He traded Joe Blanton to the Astros for Miguel Tejada.
2. He then made a phone call and traded Huston Street to the Yankees for Jason Giambi.
3. Putting the touches on a long standing deal, he dealt Rich Harden to the Orioles for Ramon Hernandez.
4. Gutting the Farm System, he sent Carlos Gonzalez, Gio Gonzalez, Fautino De Los Santos, and Ryan Sweeney to the Giants for Barry Zito.
5. Mark Ellis was sent to the Cardinals for Jason Isringhausen.
6. Chad Gaudin, Justin Duchscherer, Emil Brown, and Cash Considerations were sent to the Braves for Tim Hudson.
7. Jack Cust was offered to the Yankees for Johnny Damon, who also wanted Kurt Suzuki, and the A's obliged.
8. Bobby Crosby, Mike Sweeney, Brooks Conrad, and Andrew Brown were sent to the ChiSox for Jermaine Dye.
9. Free Agents Jeremy Giambi and Terrence Long to 2 year deals.
10. After Bob Geren promptly stormed out in frustration, Art Howe was hired as the interim manager.
Beane was quoted as saying after the frenzy was done saying "Hey, let's face it, this is a weak division. I know what I'm doing here--I do it all the time. These signings will put us over the other teams in the league, and we will win baseball games."
When asked about how he will deal with the overwhelmingly large payroll boost he'll need to pay these players, Beane quipped "Well, we've been sort of saving money up over the years. People think we're a small market team, but it's sort of like saving up one's allowance for a Nintendo Wii. We haven't bought any big players for a while, so this is our proverbial Nintendo Wii."
The "Nintendo Wii" philosophy has drawn a lot of criticism among the community. Baseball Prospectus Joe Sheehan claimed that "This is exactly the kind of statistical know-how and surprise that makes Beane the best in the game. Whereas he used to win by putting value on undervalued guys, now he'll win by putting value on old men, who are now as undervalued as fat guys were in 2002."
Scouts are against it. Joe Morgan was quoted on his telecast last night as saying "Billy Beane wrote the book on idiocy. Moneyball? More like "Dummyball!" While I do like all of these old men and will continue to support them in all of my telecasts, Billy Beane's book is the single stupidest thing I haven't read."
Ironically, Micheal Lewis recently began work on his new book "Dummyball: The Art of Making Everyone else think they're Dumb in an Unfair Game," which is planned for release early next year after the A's win their inevitable World Series ring.
The Giambi brothers, after bumping heads and cheering upon seeing eachother in today's lineup, stated that "This is the greatest thing to happen to us since ster....ility. We sure do love sterility when being injected with completely legal B12 Vitamins to help our careers. Yup. Go A's."
It's the opinion of this blogger that Beane seems to have done it again--We're once again in a position to win the Championship thanks to Billy. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go buy season tickets in the hopes that we'll have a payroll to keep these guys around for a few years while they play from the Geriatric Ward.
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