2008-2009 Hot Stove Thread

[Matthew]

Bill Jenkins has this tidbit:

The Red Sox have a young right-hander, Daniel Bard, who has hit 100 mph on radar guns in college (North Carolina), the minor leagues and now in the Boston camp. This is a very deep pitching staff, but the Sox have to a consider a reliever who, in the words of one veteran scout, has "the best fastball I've ever seen. For one inning, he's unhittable. It takes off at 100 mph. You're not going to hit it."

BTW: Jenkins (yes, the son of Gordon) is the best sportswriter in America, IMHO

The Three Dot Lounge

[Dan Gould]

Bill Jenkins has this tidbit:

The Red Sox have a young right-hander, Daniel Bard, who has hit 100 mph on radar guns in college (North Carolina), the minor leagues and now in the Boston camp. This is a very deep pitching staff, but the Sox have to a consider a reliever who, in the words of one veteran scout, has "the best fastball I've ever seen. For one inning, he's unhittable. It takes off at 100 mph. You're not going to hit it."

BTW: Jenkins (yes, the son of Gordon) is the best sportswriter in America, IMHO

The Three Dot Lounge

Everytime I think about Bard, I remember Craig Hansen - upper 90s fastball, filthy slider, and in the end, no control, no clue, Calvin Schiraldi face when the going got tough, shipped out to Pittsburgh in the deal for Bay. Plus this kid began his pro career as a starter and was an unmitigated disaster, with 73 walks in 75 innings or something like that.

And yet he's really turned it around, and he reaches that velocity with such apparent ease. I can't see how he makes the club out of spring training even though he looks very good so far, but I expect he'll get called up by July or so.

Given Papelbon's salary demands, I do believe that they regard Bard as the long-term closer, as it seems likely Papelbon won't give up any free agency years even if he does sign a deal, and he wants to "set the market" when he does reach free agency. The only thing missing in this is Scott Boras and I'd expect that Papelbon will sign with him soon enough. If Bard continues to develop, I could very easily see Papelbon be allowed to walk in a couple of years and Bard takes over as closer.

[Matthew]

Bill Jenkins has this tidbit:

The Red Sox have a young right-hander, Daniel Bard, who has hit 100 mph on radar guns in college (North Carolina), the minor leagues and now in the Boston camp. This is a very deep pitching staff, but the Sox have to a consider a reliever who, in the words of one veteran scout, has "the best fastball I've ever seen. For one inning, he's unhittable. It takes off at 100 mph. You're not going to hit it."

BTW: Jenkins (yes, the son of Gordon) is the best sportswriter in America, IMHO

The Three Dot Lounge

Everytime I think about Bard, I remember Craig Hansen - upper 90s fastball, filthy slider, and in the end, no control, no clue, Calvin Schiraldi face when the going got tough, shipped out to Pittsburgh in the deal for Bay. Plus this kid began his pro career as a starter and was an unmitigated disaster, with 73 walks in 75 innings or something like that.

And yet he's really turned it around, and he reaches that velocity with such apparent ease. I can't see how he makes the club out of spring training even though he looks very good so far, but I expect he'll get called up by July or so.

Given Papelbon's salary demands, I do believe that they regard Bard as the long-term closer, as it seems likely Papelbon won't give up any free agency years even if he does sign a deal, and he wants to "set the market" when he does reach free agency. The only thing missing in this is Scott Boras and I'd expect that Papelbon will sign with him soon enough. If Bard continues to develop, I could very easily see Papelbon be allowed to walk in a couple of years and Bard takes over as closer.

Could be a real lights-out situation for Boston: 8th. Bard. 9th. Papelbon. Though, to have two hard throwers back-to-back is not good out of a bullpen. Maybe Bard in the 7th, and curve ball specialist in the 8th., then finish with Papelbon.

[Dan Gould]

Bill Jenkins has this tidbit:

The Red Sox have a young right-hander, Daniel Bard, who has hit 100 mph on radar guns in college (North Carolina), the minor leagues and now in the Boston camp. This is a very deep pitching staff, but the Sox have to a consider a reliever who, in the words of one veteran scout, has "the best fastball I've ever seen. For one inning, he's unhittable. It takes off at 100 mph. You're not going to hit it."

BTW: Jenkins (yes, the son of Gordon) is the best sportswriter in America, IMHO

The Three Dot Lounge

Everytime I think about Bard, I remember Craig Hansen - upper 90s fastball, filthy slider, and in the end, no control, no clue, Calvin Schiraldi face when the going got tough, shipped out to Pittsburgh in the deal for Bay. Plus this kid began his pro career as a starter and was an unmitigated disaster, with 73 walks in 75 innings or something like that.

And yet he's really turned it around, and he reaches that velocity with such apparent ease. I can't see how he makes the club out of spring training even though he looks very good so far, but I expect he'll get called up by July or so.

Given Papelbon's salary demands, I do believe that they regard Bard as the long-term closer, as it seems likely Papelbon won't give up any free agency years even if he does sign a deal, and he wants to "set the market" when he does reach free agency. The only thing missing in this is Scott Boras and I'd expect that Papelbon will sign with him soon enough. If Bard continues to develop, I could very easily see Papelbon be allowed to walk in a couple of years and Bard takes over as closer.

Could be a real lights-out situation for Boston: 8th. Bard. 9th. Papelbon. Though, to have two hard throwers back-to-back is not good out of a bullpen. Maybe Bard in the 7th, and curve ball specialist in the 8th., then finish with Papelbon.

How about Saito in the eighth? He's looked very sharp so far and reports no physical problems at all. And Ramirez was very effective setting up in KC, especially against righties (third lowest BAA in the bigs). And there is still Okajima, who for all of his troubles last season ended up with very similar, and pretty dominant, stats as in 2007. And don't forget Masterson, who should be ticketed for the bullpen in the next week or so, since Buchholz has looked sharp and Penny is coming along nicely. He was excellent when he went to the pen last year, and in fact the whole staff settled down and was dominant once he was slotted in. Delcarmen is slotted for the sixth inning, and he could probably set up for most teams. And that's without Bard on the roster at all!

The bullpen could potentially be extraordinary, IMHO.

Which is probably good, because the offense might not be.

[Matthew]

Just when you think people in baseball can't get any dumber, something like this comes up.

MLBPA wants charitable clauses out

ESPN.com news services

The MLB Players' Association has filed a grievance on behalf of players who have a provision in their contracts under which they agree to make a donation through his club to a charitable organization, MLBPA chief operating officer Gene Orza told ESPN's Karl Ravech.

The rest of the story...

Edited March 22, 2009 by Matthew

[Matthew]

Japan vs. USA should be an interesting game tonight. The match up of Daisuke Matsuzaka vs. Roy Oswalt is good, Dice K will killer his last start. The early start has really hampered US pitching, but the US team seems to be really into these games, especially after the win over Puerto Rico. The atmosphere will be great at Dodger stadium, probably the number of fans for each will be equal.

[Dave James]

Holy shit!!!

GUILLEN ENDORSES GETZ FOR 2B JOB.

Up over and out.

[Matthew]

I know spring training doesn't mean anything, a lot of their players were on WBC teams, and spring training doesn't mean anything, but the Yankees look bad. I don't see how they're going to challenge Boston & Tampa Bay.

[Soulstation1]

I missed Cliff Lee pitch vs the rockies today

Dang it

[papsrus]

I know spring training doesn't mean anything, a lot of their players were on WBC teams, and spring training doesn't mean anything, but the Yankees look bad. I don't see how they're going to challenge Boston & Tampa Bay.

Maybe it's time they took a good look at themselves in the mirror. ...

[Matthew]

I know spring training doesn't mean anything, a lot of their players were on WBC teams, and spring training doesn't mean anything, but the Yankees look bad. I don't see how they're going to challenge Boston & Tampa Bay.

Maybe it's time they took a good look at themselves in the mirror. ...

I think Derek Jeter is really going struggle this year and last nights WBC game just reinforced the idea for me. The Yankees just don't strike me a a playoff team for some reason.

[Matthew]

I know spring training doesn't mean anything, a lot of their players were on WBC teams, and spring training doesn't mean anything, but the Yankees look bad. I don't see how they're going to challenge Boston & Tampa Bay.

Maybe it's time they took a good look at themselves in the mirror. ...

I think Derek Jeter is really going struggle this year and last nights WBC game just reinforced the idea for me. The Yankees just don't strike me a a playoff team for some reason.

But you know what really sucks? Waking up at 2:00 a.m. for the past three months and not being able to go back to sleep. Stuff like that makes you post on a bulletin board at 3:00 a.m.

[tkeith]

I know spring training doesn't mean anything, a lot of their players were on WBC teams, and spring training doesn't mean anything, but the Yankees look bad. I don't see how they're going to challenge Boston & Tampa Bay.

Agreed.

I missed Cliff Lee pitch vs the rockies today

Dang it

Yeah, you did -- that was a good game. The announcers were awful, but the game was good (Jeff Huson -- he was actually a better infielder than he is announcer). I was pleasantly surprised to see what a good bunter Lee is. He looked right on schedule -- if healthy, he should be a lock for 16 wins.

But you know what really sucks? Waking up at 2:00 a.m. for the past three months and not being able to go back to sleep. Stuff like that makes you post on a bulletin board at 3:00 a.m.

At least you START asleep -- some of us aren't even getting that far! :eye:

[Matthew]

I missed Cliff Lee pitch vs the rockies today

Dang it

Yeah, you did -- that was a good game. The announcers were awful, but the game was good (Jeff Huson -- he was actually a better infielder than he is announcer). I was pleasantly surprised to see what a good bunter Lee is. He looked right on schedule -- if healthy, he should be a lock for 16 wins.

Speaking of announcers: Vin Scully sounds old now. Probably his last year. Hard to believe, I'm 50 and I've been listening to him all my life. LA sports in the 70's was great, Vinny with the Dodgers, Chick with the Lakes, Enberg with the Angles, and Jerry Coleman with the Padres, great sports announcers. And speaking of the Dodgers -- they are a flat out boring team, even with Manny.

[Matthew]

Re: Derek Jeter. Here is an article that describes much better what I'm seeing about Jeter.

[Chalupa]

Schilling announces retirement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4007993

HOF??? I say yes.

[WorldB3]

Schilling announces retirement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4007993

HOF??? I say yes.

No, no and no. 214 wins considering how long he was in the league isn't good enough. Plus if the HOF takes character into consideration Schilling is a class A jerk. Great post season pitcher and I would have loved to have pitch for my team in the post season but personality wise I never liked him, even back when he was in Philly.

[Dan Gould]

I say Mussina and Schilling will be very interesting cases when they come up for a vote (and is Schilling on the ballot a year earlier than Mussina since he was never on the active roster in 2008?). I appreciate the argument about Schilling's win total being too low but an argument can be made for him being the greatest righthanded power pitcher of his era ...

[tkeith]

Speaking of announcers: Vin Scully sounds old now. Probably his last year. Hard to believe, I'm 50 and I've been listening to him all my life. LA sports in the 70's was great, Vinny with the Dodgers, Chick with the Lakes, Enberg with the Angles, and Jerry Coleman with the Padres, great sports announcers. And speaking of the Dodgers -- they are a flat out boring team, even with Manny.

Agreed. I always loved Scully, but he just needs to hang it up. He simply rambles and babbles, not all of which is incoherent, but that which matters is lost in a sea of sludge... much like this sentence. Locals around here always rave about our announcers, but I've never cared much for any of them. Don Orsillo is inoffensive, but he doesn't add much. Remy has his days, but a lot of the time, I just wish he'd shut it. A lot of my buds loved McDonough, but I think he fits into a very special suck category. The "classic" guys were Ned Martin and Dick Stockton. Martin bored the hell out of me and Stockton is a pompous ass. I'd take today's version of Scully over any of them, and that's not a compliment.

[tkeith]

Re: Derek Jeter. Here is an article that describes much better what I'm seeing about Jeter.

Interesting read. I agree that he's lost a step, but at the same time, those stats don't consider the intangibles. Jeter is a winner, and that DOES matter. Also, how much are those fielding stats influenced by his surrounding cast? In the glory years, he had Brosius on one side and Knoblauch on the other. He's well-covered to his right (an area manned by the superior SS), but Cano is a combination of limited and lazy that is much more detrimental to the performance of the team than Jeter. I'm a certified Yankee hater, and I appreciate the captain. It reminds me of the hub-bub that surrounded Ripken in later years. Quite seriously, what was the better option? Baltimore *thought* it was Manny Alexander and look how that turned out! I would have thought Jeter would be destined to finish at 1B or DH, but with the money paid out to Teix, that ain't gonna happen. Perhaps he'll replace Johnny Demon in LF? Either way, he'll die a Yankee, that much is sure. I don't think even Hank is dumb enough to make that error.

[tkeith]

Schilling announces retirement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4007993

HOF??? I say yes.

No, no and no. 214 wins considering how long he was in the league isn't good enough. Plus if the HOF takes character into consideration Schilling is a class A jerk. Great post season pitcher and I would have loved to have pitch for my team in the post season but personality wise I never liked him, even back when he was in Philly.

You left out No, No, No, NO! and HELL TO THE NO!!!! When they DNA sample to prove that the bloody sock was nail polish, we'll see how much of a McGuire Effect he experiences.

[Dan Gould]

You never cease to astonish me.

[Quincy]

Schilling announces retirement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4007993

HOF??? I say yes.

I lean towards yes even though he only had 6 to 8 very good to great seasons. He's kind of lucky that one of his worst seasons was in the strike year of '94 so he didn't lose anything from it.

It will certainly lead to a debate on counting numbers (Blyleven, Kaat, John, Mussina) vs. the shorter career but possessing something else, usually a combination of postseason and "folklore" (Hunter, Drysdale, Schilling.) There's a place for both, at least given the standards they've been using for the past 50 years or so.

I think you will see some (mostly detractors) point out similarities with Kevin Brown, maybe even Bob Welch (not saying they're accurate to a tee mind you.) It will rile up Jack Morris fans too, at least for the post season part of the argument.

Though I'm sure Phillie fans remember one of his playoff clutch performances that tends to be forgotten was his win in game 5 of the '93 series. A must win and he shut 'em out. No special sock required.

[Dan Gould]

Jack Morris fans need to deal with the Dave Steib crowd before they bitch if Schilling makes it.

[Chalupa]

Schilling announces retirement.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4007993

HOF??? I say yes.

I lean towards yes even though he only had 6 to 8 very good to great seasons. He's kind of lucky that one of his worst seasons was in the strike year of '94 so he didn't lose anything from it.

It will certainly lead to a debate on counting numbers (Blyleven, Kaat, John, Mussina) vs. the shorter career but possessing something else, usually a combination of postseason and "folklore" (Hunter, Drysdale, Schilling.) There's a place for both, at least given the standards they've been using for the past 50 years or so.

I think you will see some (mostly detractors) point out similarities with Kevin Brown, maybe even Bob Welch (not saying they're accurate to a tee mind you.) It will rile up Jack Morris fans too, at least for the post season part of the argument.

Though I'm sure Phillie fans remember one of his playoff clutch performances that tends to be forgotten was his win in game 5 of the '93 series. A must win and he shut 'em out. No special sock required.

Remember that quite well. Also Game 1 of the 1993 NLCS when he struck out the first 5 batters he faced.

Look his numbers might be marginal but his post season performances are the stuff of legend. 11-2 in 19 appearances with 3 complete games. He easily could have 12 wins if not for a 9th inning blown save in Game 1 of the 1993 NLCS.

Check this out:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8...true&cat=14