Friday Applesauce
by Joe Budd on Feb 27, 2009 10:45 AM EST
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Print9-0. That was as lopsided and encouraging a Spring Training game as I can remember. Everything, from Oliver Perez's no walks to Carlos Delgado's baserunning to Jose Reyes two HRs, indicated that this was a team that was ready to make a statement. I'm going to try and not get too excited about it (it is Spring Training after all), but that was a truly dominating performance.
Around Port St. Lucie
Here is the box score from yesterday's game. Luis Castillo continued his strong start with two runs, a hit, and two walks. The whole starting lineup was on target, with homers from Beltran and Reyes (one of which was a grand slam into the wind), and multiple hits from Delgado and Wright. Every starting position player got a hit. A new name to watch out for is Dillon Gee.
Mike Pelfrey will get his first spring start this afternoon at 1:00 against the Cardinals. The game will once again be broadcast on MLB.TV, the greatest invention since the wheel.
Using an abundance off caution, Johan Santana will skip his start today with a tender elbow. The key quote here is from Jerry Manuel: "If this was the regular season, he would pitch."
Two important things from this post. Most importantly, Professor Reyes will return this season, but also, Jerry is looking to get his windshield replaced on his Cadillac.
Here's a deeper look at the Mets included on Baseball America's Top 100. Steve Brad Holt is the guy I'm most excited about. It's been a while since the Mets have had a power pitching prospect of this quality.
Tim Redding is planning to play catch today instead of throw from a mound.
One can only hope. It's amazing what two good Spring Training games can do for your reputation.
I'm liking a lot of these suggestions. My greatest fear for Citi is that it's devoid of any character.
Around the NL East
Met killer Adam Eaton has been released by the Phillies. And there was much rejoicing.
The Philadelphia City Paper has quite the inflammatory list on Mets fans, which inspired this response. The only thing I have to say is that the article didn't deserve such a well-reasoned and well-researched response.
In other news, Philadelphia's fictional sports hero is a roided up monster.
Flip this Major League Baseball team!
Uh oh. We should probably prepare for nightmares involving this guy. Two perfect innings, six strikeouts, 99 mph.
Around the League
MANNY ALERT!!!!! Ramirez rejected the Dodgers' two-year $45 million contract offer.
Three teams are interested in Pedro, but no offers. Fortunately, the Mets are not one of the three.
Joba Chamberlain may pitch the opener at Yankee Stadium.
Former Met prospect Justin Huber signed a minor league contract with the Twins.
Your Stat Fix
Pay attention to slugging percentage in spring training.
Here's an interesting look at the stolen base in pressure situations.
It is too bad that there's no good way to quantify solid middle relief pitching besides the number of antacids the fans pop during appearances.
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Steve Holt!!
4 more years! 4 more years! 4 more years!
by BobbyV_Incognito on Feb 27, 2009 7:30 PM EST up reply actions
Correction:
Tommy Hanson was not so perfect. From that AJC piece:
The only way Tommy Hanson’s highly anticipated debut might have surpassed expectations was two perfect innings with six strikeouts.
He was far from that, allowing two runs, two hits and a walk in two innings of Thursday’s 8-7 Grapefruit League win against the Astros.
'Oh yes, I know all about that duty-of-a-citizen stuff. It doesn't go. There are exceptions to every rule, and this was one of them. When a man risks his liberty to come and root at a ball-game, you've got to hand it to him. He isn't a crook. He's a fan.'
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on Feb 27, 2009 11:06 AM EST reply actions
I think this is a minor case of FUD also. A friend who watched the game said he topped out around 92mph and in the minors has only been in the range of 88mph-92mph. I think the Atlanta pitching prospect hype machine is in full force.
That being said, he is an excellent prospect with four above average pitches. But he does NOT throw in the mid 90’s, topping at almost 100.
by Lunkwill Fook on Feb 27, 2009 2:31 PM EST up reply actions
If there was any doubt Manny was crazy before
I feel like him rejecting that offer is more than enough proof.
What an idiot
This is just becoming a joke. For a while I was thinking there might be something else out there. Now it’s clear that Manny and Boras are just being Manny and Boras.
"One of the nice things about baseball is that there are no rules you can't break." - Jim Bouton
Manny
While I am not defending him or this latest move, the Los Angeles Times reported that the reason he rejected this deal is because it included $25 million in deferred payments.
The article (which I can’t link to for some reason) suggests that Ramirez may have accepted the offer if not for the deferred money which wouldn’t be paid in full untill 2013. So that is a bit different. Still, the Dodgers aren’t going to bid against themselves so unless Boras can come up with another suitor, I think Manny will be a Dodger. I don’t think he wants to sit out and Boras would pressure against that I’m sure.
Why does Manny need all the money w/in the next two years?
Does he have dibs on a small third world country that he just has to have? I think the vast majority here know how I feel about professional athletes and obscene amounts of money. Manny et al. can go suck a cactus!
Latest news: Apparently Boras didn’t balk at the deferred contract. This story states that he wanted $55 million for two years for Manny and that’s the reason that the deal didn’t get accomplished. I can only shake my head. I forgot that people like Boras and Manny live in Bizarro world.
I know one thing, if MLB agrees to what the NBA has been approached with by the banks, I’m done with baseball. Maybe I’m ignorant on the issue. Do sports franchises frequently borrow money to cover operating expenses? Or is this just a one time thing due to the current economic situation? What options do business owners have when they’re not pulling in enough revenue to cover cost? Raise prices (can’t do that, people can hardly afford prices now) and/or pay employees less (Dear God! We wouldn’t want players to make less!).
Well, it seems in this case, some teams are willing to borrow money at a rate over 8% instead. Salaries of players will come down in the future. How many one year contracts have we already heard of this year in baseball? Is it the norm or is it more? How’s the attendance faring at spring training games this year compared to last?
" Rebecca Gomez-Diamond. Will you marry me? "
by LOUtheMETandNATSfan on Feb 27, 2009 11:10 PM EST up reply actions
Boras is apparently livin' in f$*&% Candyland.
The economy is just plain awful right now. That lending money to pro sports leagues and franchises thing isn’t standard procedure. Right now, the NBA is entering a financial tailspin. It’s rumored that the league is estimating that at least 1/2 of the teams will lose money this season. It’s widely expected that the NBA’s salary cap & luxury tax threshold will both drop some next year.
All sports leagues are taking it on the chin; people are buying fewer tickets. If they’re still going to games (b/c they’ve already bought the tickets, or bought them cheap), they’re buying fewer souvenirs and less food/beer. At every single Devils game I’ve been to this season, at least half of the luxury suites have been empty. Considering they’re a first-place team with a brand spankin’ new arena, that’s a bad sign. The suites are where teams make most of their $$. So if those aren’t being used (if you’ve already bought them, it’s cheaper to not go b/c then you’re not buying the overpriced food/drinks) the team’s out a lot of money. The NBA & NFL might come out of this alright, but baseball and hockey could be in trouble. The Phoenix Coyotes are losing about $30 MILLION per season, and no one has a freaking clue how to stop the bleeding. My favorite quote about them: “If I were offered the team for a dollar, I’d say no because you can’t fix it.” Baseball’s not in that kind of trouble yet, but I don’t think that even the Yankees can afford to continue their spending sprees for very long.
As for Manny and Boras, I can only say that it takes true stupidity and greed to demand such a contract during such a fallow market and when the economy is tanking so hard.
by BobbyV_Incognito on Feb 28, 2009 1:17 AM EST up reply actions
Concur.
" Rebecca Gomez-Diamond. Will you marry me? "
by LOUtheMETandNATSfan on Feb 28, 2009 7:19 AM EST up reply actions
do you listen to Bill Simmons' podcast?
b/c he was talking about this same thing on his latest one in regards to the NBA.
No, but I did read his new column.
by BobbyV_Incognito on Feb 28, 2009 11:16 AM EST up reply actions
The Devils aren't drawing poorly because of the economy.
The Devils are drawing poorly because they have no fans.
That ran through my mind
The Devils have historically drawn pretty poorly, yeah?
'Oh yes, I know all about that duty-of-a-citizen stuff. It doesn't go. There are exceptions to every rule, and this was one of them. When a man risks his liberty to come and root at a ball-game, you've got to hand it to him. He isn't a crook. He's a fan.'
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on Feb 28, 2009 7:36 PM EST up reply actions
It's the only example I can draw from firsthand.
Hockey doesn’t have great attendance numbers league-wide, I think (it’s almost 3 a.m., and I’m not about to go looking very hard for those numbers). They may not have a ton of fans, but they’re a highly successful team with a brand-new arena that’s easy to get to, and comparatively affordable tickets. Besides, my point wasn’t the total lack of attendance, it was empty luxury boxes, which are a major revenue source for teams.
by BobbyV_Incognito on Mar 1, 2009 2:50 AM EST up reply actions
Economy
I mostly agree with this. Although I think baseball will come out OK before the NBA. Manny doesn’t want the defered money because he’s then reducing the current value of the contract, plus they know that POTUS is letting the tax cuts expire in 2010 so that money is getting taxed at higher rate.
do you really think Manny knows that?
I get the sense that Manny is a little like Rain Man, only instead of memorizing numbers, he hits a baseball.
And watch out for his bath water!
" (Stewie) Wait a minute. Germany is building WMD's? Then, why doesn't America go in there and kick their a$$e$? (Brian) I don't know. Maybe it's because they don't have any oil? (Stewie) Ohhhhhhh. Clap, clap, clap, clap, claaaaap. "
by LOUtheMETandNATSfan on Mar 3, 2009 1:35 PM EST up reply actions
Maybe he's waiting on the Yankees to go on a losing streak during the season.
You know, try to pull a Clemens and get a huge pile of cash for a couple of months of work. Other than that, I can’t comprehend what gigantic contract he is waiting on.
'Oh yes, I know all about that duty-of-a-citizen stuff. It doesn't go. There are exceptions to every rule, and this was one of them. When a man risks his liberty to come and root at a ball-game, you've got to hand it to him. He isn't a crook. He's a fan.'
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on Feb 27, 2009 11:40 AM EST up reply actions
That's a good point
Who would be stupid enough to offer Manny what the Dodgers are offering him for two months?…The Yankees, of course! So what if the Clemens deal was a complete waste of money? Since when does Brian Cashman learn from his mistakes?
"One of the nice things about baseball is that there are no rules you can't break." - Jim Bouton
A friend of mine thinks he could make a killing as an agent
if he was able to convince big ticket free agents to sit out half of each season until the Yankees lost a few games in a row, forcing them to overpay for short-term work. He figures that he would revolutionize the sports agent industry.
'Oh yes, I know all about that duty-of-a-citizen stuff. It doesn't go. There are exceptions to every rule, and this was one of them. When a man risks his liberty to come and root at a ball-game, you've got to hand it to him. He isn't a crook. He's a fan.'
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on Feb 27, 2009 12:14 PM EST up reply actions
I'd say that it's not that Cashman hasn't learned from his mistakes.
It’s that Hank Steinbrenner is a spoiled little rich boy who’s got tons of money, but ain’t got the sense god gave a goat.
by BobbyV_Incognito on Feb 27, 2009 7:33 PM EST up reply actions
That article by the Philadelphia City Paper is actually absurd.
"I dunno. I never smoked any Astroturf"
-Tug McGraw
Talk about amateur journalism!
How pathetic.
"One of the nice things about baseball is that there are no rules you can't break." - Jim Bouton
the last part of the article was all you needed to read
after wasting our time with frat-boy juvenile crap, the article admits what I and others have said all along. The real reason for the Phillies hate of the Mets is Jose Reyes. And the reason they hate Reyes is because they think that only white or non-Latin players are allowed to show any enthusiasm and love for the game. So Victarino can act like a dancing fool but Reyes and Delgado can’t have any fun. and actually when Victarino danced in the playoffs, they told him not to act like Reyes. Translation, act more white.
yes, I went there and I’m right. Phillies fans like those of the article writer are nothing more than bigoted jerks.
Mo Vaughn's Lunchbox 2/27/09
all this talk about philadelphia reminds me of one of our roadtrips back in 2002. a couple of us went down to Geno’s after a game and I asked for the BIGGEST cheesesteak they could make, because i was HUNGRY! LOL! anyway, they must have put 3 cheesesteaks together becuase this thing was bigger than my ARM! anyway, before i could dig in, Ty Wiggington comes up to me and asks, “Hey Mo, how the hell are you going to eat a cheesesteak THAT freakin big?” So I turn to Ty and say, “One bite at a time, Wiggy, one bite at a time.”
HELLO HELLO MR WILPON. WE WANT THE MANSION NOT THE CONDO.
It's horrible that Mo
is remembered for eating himself out of the game. He was actually one hell of hitter and reputed really nice guy and has done some wonderful stuff with his post baseball life.
Gigantic Sandwich Alert!
Interesting. Notice how the ketchup and salt and pepper dispensers are displayed so neatly adjacent to the big sloppy sandwich?
" Stewie, Shawanda just took these pictures of you with her cell phone. "
by LOUtheMETandNATSfan on Mar 3, 2009 2:13 AM EST up reply actions
Does anyone know much about Gee's pitch repertoire
I know his k/9 isn’t very impressive and his velocity is meh but his control seems kind of awesome if you look at his k/bb rated in the minors, albeit in low levels.
Gee
First of, I’m obviously not a scout nor do I pretend to know what I’m talking about but I did get to see Gee pitch in Binghamton last year. Gee threw a fastball that sat at 88-89 and reached 91. He had a real good change up, his arm speed was exactly the same as when he threw the fastball and that seemed . He used his curve sparingly in the start I saw him but he spotted it well, wasn’t just a show-me pitch out of the zone. He didn’t walk a single batter struck out 4 or 5 hitters and got 3-4 double plays even though it didn’t seem like he was getting that many groundballs. Basically, he’s the type of pitcher that isn’t impressive until the excuse that he’s just using his good control and a real good change to get less experienced hitters out.
"It's been a while since the Mets have had a power pitching prospect of this quality."
What about Pelfrey?
Pelfrey is a power pitcher. He’s just not a strikeout pitcher. 95+ mph heat is power.
by Lunkwill Fook on Feb 27, 2009 8:31 PM EST up reply actions
Pelfrey
Absolutely qualifies as a power pitcher. Pelfrey is able to throw his four-seamer 96-97, his sinker 92-93. That’s plus velocity. And while he isn’t much of a strikeout pitcher in the big leagues he did demonstrate the ability in the minors (109 Ks in 96 minor league innings in his first season).
I hope he releashes some of that power on Jimmy Rollins' knee cap.
" Rebecca Gomez-Diamond. Will you marry me? "
by LOUtheMETandNATSfan on Feb 28, 2009 7:16 AM EST up reply actions
Ok I will amend
We just have different meanings for power pitcher. I define a power pitcher as someone who must miss bats to be effective. Pelfrey does not have to do this with his hard sinker. His current comparables are Chris Carpenter and Jamey Wright, hardly power pitchers.(yes I hope and expect he will be better than either of those two) Pelfrey is actually at his best when he does not try to strike out everybody and and relies on groundballs. While I don’t know much about Holt, he is more of a strikeout pitcher than Pelfrey at this point but you can’t really compare them yet since Holt hasn’t pitched at the highest levels. Bottom line, I’d rather Pelfrey think of himself as a groundball pitcher in the mold of Brandon Webb.
By the way, I also note that BP does not seem that high on him this year at all.
This is what I like about Pelfrey.
He has the arm and power to be a power pitcher and strikeout guys, and I expect him to increase his K/9 as he matures. However, he also is a groundball pitcher, similar in his results to Brandon Webb. I think this versatility is what’s going to keep himself good for a while, probably (if he improves and goes on the expected path) past the ages that Pedro and other power pitchers lost their effectiveness.
"I dunno. I never smoked any Astroturf"
-Tug McGraw
I guess the question is
Can he maintain the groundball rates AND really significantly improve his k rate? He had insane k rates his first year in the minor, even in AA, it seems like his k rates declined as Peterson had him focus on throwing his sinker more in order to induce more ground balls.
This is where looking at comparables is kind of stupid, no offense.
Pitchers get the reputation “power pitcher” based on stuff, not strikeout rates. Barry Zito used to strike out a ton of guys when he was in Oakland, does that make him a power pitcher? I don’t think so.
Pelfrey has power stuff. He can his 97 MPH on the gun. Although he doesn’t get a lot of strikeouts, he still has an overpowering fastball, especially when he has that heavy sinker going. If the guy could just develop a decent breaking ball (or even a changeup), I bet you would see his K rate jump up.
As for BP, you need to know a few things about them. In my experience, their projections are pretty conservative, and they rely on the last 3 seasons worth of data. If you think of Pelfrey as a blue chip guy who was rushed, you can almost throw the two years prior to ’08, because he has transformed himself as a pitcher.
Wouldn't you agree though
that Pelfrey at 92-94 MPH might be a better pitcher than the 97+ Pelfrey who often had trouble finding the plate(and also had bad secondary pitches)?
I should say
92-94 MPH but throwing that hard sinker for ground balls.
They're the same Pelfrey
the 97+ pitch is a four seamer, 92-94 is a two seamer. A two seamer cuts through the air differently than a four seamer with increased resistance. Result less speed but more movement. In April, Pelfrey just threw two seamers, when that didn’t work, in a couple of starts in early May he threw just four seamers. (I think Peterson figured he would better control if he just concentrated on one fastball) Right before Peterson was fired, Pelfrey started throwing both of the fastballs and continued to do so throughout the season.
Holt
looks like a total steal so far. Good job Omar
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