Joe Sheehan spots two underdogs making early noise, grabs Ronnie Belliard, Jay Payton and Endy Chavez at bargain-basement prices in roto, and starts saber-rattling for a new cause with Erubiel Durazo justly freed.
Joe Sheehan offers a darkhorse candidate to replace Derek Jeter, defends Boston’s bullpen set-up, and chronicles the exploits of a free man.
The best division in the National League features three solid playoff contenders, and two teams that might be no more than a year away.
This will be a transition year in the NL Central, as the teams that
have been
at the top for years cede control to a pair of up-and-comers. Don’t
worry,
though: Those of you desiring sameness can still take comfort in the
Brewers.
The NL East is a mess, with overpaid teams, overrated teams, teams with no
ownership and teams that might be better off with no ownership. It’s possible
that no team will win 90 games, and that the spread from top to bottom won’t
be 20 games.
The American League East is moving slowly from a 2-3 configuration to a 2-1-2,
as the Toronto Blue Jays put together not just a good team, but an
organization that will sustain success. The division will be 3-2 by 2005, but
for now, it’s the same rivals dueling for supremacy.
Are the Twins standing too pat? Are the White Sox finally ready to fulfill
expectations? Are there really five teams in the AL Central? Joe Sheehan comes
back from vacation to answer these questions and more.
Joe Sheehan begins his divisional previews series with a stroll through the AL West. Will Erubiel Durazo stay healthy long enough to push the A’s offense to the top of the league? Can Chan Ho Park and company ratchet up last year’s miserable pitching staff? Will the Angels’ put-everything-in-play hitting approach bring the Rally Monkey back for another October engagement? And can Mike Cameron break out and give the M’s offense a badly-needed lift?
Monday, the Blue Jays announced that they’d signed both Eric Hinske and
Vernon Wells to five-year deals in the neighborhood of $15 million. The
deals take both players through their arbitration seasons, while not buying
out any years of free agency. More importantly, the deals tie each player to
the Jays through their probable peak; Hinske is under contract through age 29,
Wells through age 28.
My first reaction to the deals was positive. Hinske should be a good player
through the life of the deal, although he lacks the potential of, say, Eric
Chavez or Hank Blalock. Hinske’s defense improved enough during last
season to scotch the idea of moving him off of third base, which leaves just
his performance against left-handers (.202/.293/.339) as a major flaw in his
game. Wells has a higher upside and considerably more defensive value than
Hinske does, although his lousy OBP means that he hasn’t been as good a player
to date.
With a few days to reflect on spring training and his time in Arizona, Joe Sheehan concludes that ouija offers more predictive value than spring training stats. Plus, letting Miguel Tejada go is the right move, even if it hurts the ears to listen to Steve Schott complain.
I mentioned yesterday that John Halama is the front-runner to be the
Athletics’ #5 starter. If he does win the job, the A’s would have four
left-handers in the rotation, with Halama backing up Mark Mulder,
Barry Zito and Ted Lilly. Before the A’s/Rockies game on
Tuesday, I asked an A’s executive if that imbalance concerned the team, and he
said that it didn’t, that quality pitching is quality pitching.
While it goes against our religion here at Baseball Prospectus to
question anything the A’s do, I have to admit I was curious. Is there any
disadvantage to getting a disproportionate number of starts from one side or
the other?
Dennis Tankersley falls further behind in the Padres’ arms race. Jack Cust’s journey from the next Jim Thome to Chris Richard bait. Steve Reed: Best Rockies pitcher ever? And Joe Sheehan would never taunt readers with stories of 80-degree sunshine, would he?
Joe Sheehan checks in from Arizona with in-depth looks at the Rangers, Giants, Angels and Padres, with special shoutouts to Ken Phelps All-Stars Jermaine Clark and Mario Valdez.
That I was wrong just brings the real issue into sharper focus: I’m not
supposed to be making these judgments. Don’t get me wrong, I know baseball. I
played the game, and just about every variant of it, for many years, and I
watch as much of the game as anybody you’ll find. (Just ask Sophia.) But my
talent isn’t in observing, and when I let my eyes make decisions for me, I end
up doing silly things like projecting the A’s to finish behind the Rangers and
Mariners.
What happens when a mild-mannered columnist gets involved with a group of
fire-breathing fantasy baseball experts? Confusion, puzzlement, and Alex
Gonzalez for $7. Joe Sheehan reports from the Rotowire Staff League fantasy
auction.
Felipe Alou and his ill-founded love for Marquis Grissom. Dusty Baker and his ill-founded love for Eric Karros. Bob Brenly and his ill-founded love for Matt Mantei. Special guest appearances by Nigel Wilson, Chris Tremie and Sherman Obando. Plus Joe needs your roto help.