In the wake of Commissioner Selig’s latest declaration that the 36-year-old Oakland Coliseum “cannot produce enough revenue for [the Athletics] to be competitive,” more attention should be paid to another perennial contender in a similar plight. If recent trends continue, the New York Yankees will soon need a new ballpark to remain competitive.
2005’s Overseas Opener to feature Tigers, Blue Jays
New York (API) — The Office of the Commissioner today announced that MLB’s successful ”Overseas Opener” program will continue next year, with the Detroit Tigers and Toronto Blue Jays playing a three-game series in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The Tigers and Jays will also play exhibition games against two teams from the fledgling Sierra Leone United League, the BHP Miners, and the DeBeers Ham Fighters. …
For the last decade, pitchers have not feared elbow surgery as they once did. Advances in surgical techniques and rehabilitation have made what was once a career-threatening condition a routine procedure with a predictable outcome. Return from Tommy John surgery has been reduced from two years in the late ’70s to a mere nine-to-12 months today.
The same cannot be said for shoulder injuries. Instead of surgical repair, the best techniques have been those of prevention. Dr. Frank Jobe’s “Throwers Ten” program has led to a reduction in the number of rotator cuff injuries at all levels of baseball, but at the same time, there has been an explosion of a new type of injury–the labrum tear.
George Steinbrenner describes his decision to let Joe Torre go. Chuck LaMar defends his methods. And Dusty Baker sees the light. All this and many more quips in your Thursday edition of The Week In Quotes.
After starting his baseball career as a beat writer, Fred Claire moved on to public relations with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He’d go on to spend 30 years in the Dodger organization, capped by his stint from 1987 to 1998 as general manager. Following 11 years as GM, including a 1988 World Series victory, newly-minted Fox ownership fired Claire soon after the landmark Mike Piazza trade of ’98. Claire now works as a consultant for Performance Health Technologies of Boulder, Col., marketing a shoulder rehab device called SportsRac to pro athletes and weekend warriors. BP recently spoke to Claire about his career in Dodger Blue, the death of family ownership in the game, the Pedro Martinez trade, and the Dodger Way.
I’m one of the many observers picking the Phillies to prevail in the NL East. Like many prognosticators, however, I make this prediction with a sense of foreboding that a certain team down in Atlanta isn’t quite ready to cede the division. Rationally, I know the Braves’ rotation has been systematically disemboweled by age and departure. I also know that last season’s Panzer division of an offense has lost its two best performers, Javy Lopez and Gary Sheffield, to the AL East. Still, the last 13 years have taught me that betting against the Braves is a cockamamie endeavor. With all that in mind, let’s take a look at what PECOTA says about the division and determine what needs to happen for the Braves to dish out yet another dynastic noogie to the collective scalp of the NL East.
Some of the players that the Tigers brought in have some risk to them. Bobby Higginson may not have a light, but he does have a history. He’s another of the Pilates and core performance proponents, but his problems have been in his legs. Dmitri Young has had minor problems, including his back and both Achilles tendons, but again, he’ll be protected since he’s one of few true threats in the lineup. Even Carlos Pena has had problems, but the mysterious sluggingfirstbasemanitis of the wrist hasn’t affected him over the past few seasons. And that’s just the green lights…
Jack Cust could finally get his chance with the Orioles. The back of the Rockies’ rotation could be Tsao-Tsao. The Mets should benefit from stronger up-the-middle defense. These and other news and notes in today’s Prospectus Triple Play.
The threshold for changing managers varies from team to team. In Boston, an obviously wrongheaded move with Pedro Martinez was enough the get Grady Little handed his hat, whereas in Houston a more sustained failure of critical thinking (rather than a failure of intelligence, which means a whole different thing these days) gets overlooked. As Billy Joel sang, it’s a matter of trust, though not in the “Will Billy Martin come to the park sober tonight?” sense, but rather the “Would you trust this doctor to prescribe you a Band-Aid?” aspect. Among the many underpublicized acts of suicide by a manager last year was Jimy Williams’ overfondness for Geoff Blum, Orlando Merced, and a host of other fill-ins; plate appearances were thrown away with an alarming profligacy, more than enough to make the difference in a close race. This time around, the big question is not only if Williams will repeat the same mistakes with his Orlando Palmeiro, his Jose Vizcaino, and his Mike Lamb (“Sometimes, when you have nothing to do,” says Sbirro in Stanley Ellin’s classic 1948 short story, “The Specialty of the House,” “you must turn your thoughts a little to the significance of the Lamb in religion. It will be so interesting.” ) but if, when the time comes, the organization will forcibly divorce the team from its favorite crutches by trading for a real catcher or center fielder.
The Rockies have become more like a puzzle than a baseball team. While the intellectual exercise is good, the fact is that the problem of winning at altitude has become a lot more interesting than the team itself. While baseball at a mile high should be among the most exciting spectacles in the game–tape measure home runs and plenty of hitting–this team just doesn’t look like anything more than a bad team. The Rockies head into the 2004 campaign with most of the same questions they had last season. Their best players are slightly fragile and their supporting cast isn’t enough to take up the slack when those players inevitably miss games. The pitching staff will be slightly healthier, but Denny Neagle has to be taken into account in the overall assessment of the medical staff.
The Braves hit the trade market for pitching help. The White Sox aim to find some use for Timo Perez. Kahrl to Twins: Free Justin Morneau! Khalil Greene claims the Padres SS job outright with St. Rey shuffling off. These and other happenings in today’s Transaction Analysis.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Four years ago, when the Mets and Cubs became the first teams to open the season
with a short series in Tokyo, I went to bed early, set my alarm for 2 a.m. PST,
jumped out of bed right around that time, watched the game and fired off a
diary of the experience for posting that morning. It was a fun exercise,
especially since it was a pretty good game and I had at least a few hours’
sleep.
So with my…er, the Yankees opening their 2004 season in Japan, I
figured this would be another opportunity to get a fun column out of it. Being
on the East Coast now, though, and with no real sleep pattern to speak of, I
elected to stay up all night to do so.
I guess that was my first bad decision. My second was asking Grady Little to
be my insurance policy in case I dozed off. As you’d expect, Little eventually
got me, but just a few minutes too late. Figures.
Curt Schilling could be perfectly suited for Fenway Park. The Reds’ rotation needs a lift from some young guns. The Marlins don’t need a roof on a new ballpark. The Yankees hope to avoid jet lag on their trip home from Japan. The Pirates’ baserunning errors didn’t hurt much last year. The Padres should expect improvement in their rotation. These and other news and notes in today’s Double-Stuft edition of Prospectus Triple Play.
While the Cubs and Astros are the consensus picks, there are smart analysts out there picking the Cardinals. There are reasons to believe this, but in the immortal words of The Dude, “The Dude cannot abide.” This lineup is not only bright Cardinal red, but a whole bunch of yellow. The second base situation is so bad that comparing it to an Ed Wood movie is an insult to Ed Wood, fuzzy sweater or not. Simply put, this team has the talent to win, but probably can’t keep that talent between the lines long enough to really challenge the Astros and Cubs. As Walter Sobchak would say, “You’re about to enter a world of pain.” Every position player has a light on the Cardinals, something I didn’t think had happened before. I checked and there’s never been more than six lights for the position players, even for AL teams where the DH is included in my lineups. The Cardinals can abide almost any injury as long as it’s not Albert Pujols. Pujols is gaining distance from his sprained elbow, but it remains a concern. His injury risk is reduced at first, but he remains yellow… and yet he’s the least risky player on the field.
Back by popular demand, I bring you another installment of “Conversations With Dave,” which are, in fact, not with Dave, but with someone not named Dave at all, who’s not a stathead or blogger, or even a management consultant. The conversation was not transcribed perfectly, but Dave has had an opportunity to review and approve the final copy, to make certain he wasn’t misrepresented.
Jaret Wright doesn’t get it. Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker talk chemistry. Doubles or home runs? Tough question, according to the Brewers. All this and more in this week’s edition of The Week In Quotes.