Did Wagner make a mistake?

EDITORS NOTE: I apologize it took so long for this to be published, it is my fault and has nothing to do with the writer, Corey Sobel. My apologies to all the readers and to Corey as well.

There is a month left in the regular season and Billy Wagner made the right choice. Finally realizing that going to the Boston Red Sox was the smart move after continually changing his mind. But before we get into what happened, let me tell you a little bit about this man and his career.

Wagner is a 38 year old closer in his 15th MLB season. He is only 15 saves away from 400. He can pass John Franco, another great closer in saves and become the all time saves leaders among left handed pitchers. John Franco has 424 compared to the 385 Wagner has, which also puts Wagner at 6th place all time. In two full seasons he probaly could accomplish that feat if he gets back to the dominant pitcher once was.

August 20th 2009 was the first game he pitched in since August 2, 2008 because he was recovering from Tommy John Surgery. Wagner was with the New York Mets for the past four seasons and was put on waivers in the past week. If you don't know what that means, here's how you break it down. Any player under contract can be put on waivers by his team at any time. The player that is now on waivers can be picked up by any team. If a team claims a player off waivers, his current team may choose to do one of the following options:

• arrange a trade with the claiming team for that player within two business days of the claim
• keep the player on its major league roster, canceling the waiver
• or do nothing and allow the claiming team to (1) assume the player's existing contract, (2) pay the waiving team a waiver fee, and (3) place the player on its active major league roster

If no team claims the player from waivers in three business days, the player has cleared waivers and may be assigned to a minor league team, traded, or released.

Back to my point though, my favorite team, the Boston Red Sox went on and claimed Mr. Wagner. Which I think makes a great addition to the Red Sox bullpen. The other night watching the MLB Network though, according to Ken Rosenthal, he thought otherwise. “Wagner will be staying with the New York Mets” said Rosenthal. Then the very next day it is reported that Wagner has decided to allow the trade to proceed.

I’m sorry, but this really annoys me as I’m sure it does anyone else. If you are a respected writer and you are on national television, do your job and do it right! My problem is how he said “Wagner will be staying with the New York Mets.” If it is not 100% that he is staying, then he should say something like “it is very likely that Billy Wager will be staying with the New York Mets” or something of that nature. I think it should be his responsibility to do your job to the best of your ability and to report false information in my opinion you are doing your job poorly.

After a lot of thought, Billy Wagner has decided to go to the Red Sox. It almost didn’t happen though and here's the reason why;
If a player has a no trade clause like Billy Wagner does then he may decide to decline going to any team, which is what almost has happened here. Now you may be asking yourself why Wagner would not want to leave a team like the AAA Mets to go play for the wild card leading Boston Red Sox right? Yeah I'm wondering the same thing, but here's why as far as we know. Wagner wants to be a closer for a team next year and not an 8th inning setup man. Which is what might happen if he stayed with Boston after the next year, since the Red Sox have one of the best closers in baseball with Jonathan Papelbon. Wagner has a club option for $8 million next year or the team can use their buyout for $1 million. He is still owed about $3 million for the rest of the season.
The team can then offer him arbitration.

His concern was that Boston would try to keep him as a setup man in 2010 which is not what he desires. The main issue is if he's offered and declines arbitration, it will be hard for him to receive a new contract that he thinks he deserves because he will be considered a type A free agent. This means that if a new team acquires him next year, they will now have to give up two draft picks in the next seasons draft. Something teams obviously don't like to do.

This trade works well for both teams in my opinion. The Mets save themselves about $3 million by letting go of a player they didn’t need this year. They also acquire two players from the Red Sox minor league system and the Red Sox get a player who can possibly be the setup man they desperately need right now.

So to answer the question if Billy Wagner made the right choice, YES I would definitely say that he did. Leaving a team like the Mets and knowing how they will finish the season at best 4th place is one reason. I think he can acquire more interest from other teams next year going to a team like the Red Sox and possibly pitching in the post season showing off how good he really can be. Plus I figure this way they can use Papelbon as much as they want and rest him more often for the playoffs. Also then when they need a closer they have Wagner as a back-up. Looking at that situation, I bet in Boston he will have had a much better chance to close a game then with the NY Mets this year at least.

The downside of him heading to Boston could turn out to be like the John Smoltz experiment. Smoltz had pitched in the National League his whole career until this season. He came to the American League Boston Red Sox and did awful. He went 2-5 as a starter with an 8.33 ERA. Now Smoltz is back in the NL with the Cardinals though and in his debut he allowed 3 hits in 5 IP, 0 walks, 0 ER and on top of that had 9 SO. Now if Smoltz was a reliever with the Red Sox maybe things would have turned out differently for the future Hall of Famer. As his statistics indicated when he went through the batting order:

First time through: .250/.342/.313
Second time through: .388/.397/.657
Third time through: .400/.429/.900

Also Wagner heading to the AL East and pitching at Fenway can only hurt his statistics instead of helping him since he’ll be leaving the friendly confines of Citi Field. It's a tough choice for anybody to make especially if he has to move his family which is another factor entirely. Something we often forget when talking about players moving to a new city and playing for a new team.

The other problem with this scenario is that Papelbon, whether he is really threatened or not about his job, is opening his mouth like always and letting everyone know he does not think this is a good idea. So bringing another closer to the Red Sox could possibly hurt some chemistry between the team. Not a huge concern of mine, but maybe it could be a bigger deal then I realize.

In Wagner’s first few games he has pitched well just so everyone knows. In his 5 innings of work he has given up 1 hit, 2 walks, gotten 11 strikeouts, and has not given up a run yet.

As always this has been, Corey Sobel, with a special report.

An introduction of sorts but lets look at the basics of....

Now I know that that really isn't much of a title, but as Baseball is halfway through August with September coming around the corner and teams really beginning to decide their fates, this is one of the best times of the years to be a Baseball fan. Trust me, down at the local park playing softball on the dusty field, you could really feel the heat today in Huntington. Take for example, the Texas Rangers. Texas could be considered this year's Tampa Bay Rays with how well they have stepped up in the American League West, currently only 4.5 out behind the 1st place LA of A Angles and virtually tied with the Boston Red Sox for the AL Wildcard right now. Every year, you could pick one surprise team that has shocked the nation and reached levels of National Stardom, and they've been able to do it with virtual no-namers with the exception of a few key players and some home grown talent through the minors.

Texas is doing it with the young talent that they've acquired from the Atlanta Braves farm system for Mark Teixeria such as Elvis Andrus. Now Andrus has an immense amount of talent and potential on the Major League level including his defensive skills and his eye for working the count. As a young hitter, playing with a veteran like Omar Visquel will do wonders for his career in the immense amount of knowledge that he can give to Elvis. Texas also manages to have a very respectable Starters ERA of 3.57, especially playing inside such a hitter park like the Ballpark in Arlington. Then you factor in the bullpen of recent call-up Neftali Feliz, who can reach triple digits along with CJ Wilson and closer Frank Francisco, Texas is a very dangerous team. Don't forget, this is a trend that has seen young and inspiring teams such as the Colorado Rockies, Tampa Bay Rays, Detroit Tigers, and even the Chicago White Sox go all the way to the World Series.

Now I'll make no bones about it, my favorite sport is Baseball and my favorite team along with Mr. DeJoy is the New York Yankees. As great as the Yankees have been playing since the Allstar break, 23-6 (Not including today's game in the result in Seattle,) the Yankees are on track to win a total of 101 games. Now I know its early to even have teams locked in for Post Season Play in October but when you have a 3.5 game lead over the next closest team in all of Baseball for the Best Record in Baseball, most would say that the Yankees are locked in. Especially considering their huge 7.5 game lead over the Boston Red Sox at this moment in the AL East.

I think people knew the Yankees were bound to be good and even get back into serious baseball play, but not at this rate. When you look at the moves the Yankees have made, sure, you can take the easy way out and point to the three huge moves that the Yankees made in the off season to almost spend $500 Million dollars on three player in AJ Burnett, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeria, but that would be the easy way out. The Yankees have succeeded thanks in large part to how well their Bullpen has performed since mid May.

Brian Bruney hasn't given up a run since the 1st day of August, Phil Coke ranks 9th in the AL this year in Holds with 14 and pitched 1.2 innings against Seattle and got 3 out of the 5 batters he faced via the strikeout, while not allowing a hit. Phil Hughes has been everything that the Yankees could have expected and even more with the way he's been lights out this year from his position in the Bullpen. In what was thought to be a big bust from last year's role as a starter, Phil has taken the responsibility and flew with flying colors in his role. Alfredo Aceves has locked it down with his excellence this year in another case of starter turned reliever and David Robertson came into a very crucial game yesterday and shut the door down on a possible Seattle comeback in the 6th by striking out the first 2 batters he saw in a Bases loaded situation after Sergio Mitre started to explode (not to mention, Robertson does lead all American League pitchers in K/9). You can point out to the contract year that Johnny Damon is having and realize that he is going to break his career high in home runs (24) thanks to the short porch in right field. Lets not forget the GM and the guys that Brian Cashman acquired in Eric Hinske and Jerry Hariston Jr. around the trade deadline and Super Sub, Nick Swisher (Who hit his 20th homerun in Seattle in the off season from Chicago) for mere means of cash and nobodies that have helped the Yankees out in major ways also with clutch hits here and there. I know its early and I don't want to jinx them, but the Yankees are without a doubt, one of the best, if not THE BEST team in baseball and that's the facts for now.

Just to give an update on the Wildcard Standings, with the win from the Mets, the Ultra Tight...Tighter than 2 sizes too small tight, NL Wildcard Race, Colorado leads the race by one game over San Fran and Florida.....those Marlins are fighting along with the Atlanta Braves only 2.5 games back and my NL Fan Favorite Chicago Cubs are just 3 games back. Not to mention that Milwaukee and their recent shakeup only sit 5.5 back of Colorado at 58-58.

In the AL, thanks to Texas taking 2 out of 3 from Boston in Texas, they now stand in the Wildcard lead ahead of Boston by only a half a game with Tampa lurking at just 3.5 games.

God, I love Baseball.

Till Next Time,
I'm Nick Malone

WCWP Sports

Sayonara Godzilla

Hey fans, Mike here.

I know it's only August, and the Yankees still have September, and the playoffs and hopefully the World Series to get through before they have to start thinking about the 2010 team, but I can't help but already begin to miss Hideki Matsui.

Matsui, known in Japan (and America, yet not quite deserved) as Godzilla, came to the Yankees in 2003 on a three year deal worth $21 million. He was a great success in his first season in pinstripes, even while lacking the enormous power he had in Japan, and managed to hit .287 w/16 homers and 106 RBI.

Matsui came within points of winning the Rookie of the Year award but lost out to Angel Berroa (remember him?). Berroa had the same exact batting average, one more homer and 29 less RBI. Matsui, in my eyes, was the true winner that year. He clearly had better stats and did it in a much more pressure packed atmosphere than Kansas City. He would have won if a number of writers didn't decide to take the rules upon themselves to change. Many people openly said they did not vote for Matsui because he was not a true "rookie" considering his years of service in Japan.

Listen, I agree with these guys. I don't think 30 year old's coming over from Japan are "rookies" in the truest sense of the word, but according to the rules, whether we like it or not, they are eligible, so Matsui should have been the winner.

Moving over the two remaining years of his contract, Matsui hit .298 with 31 homers and 108 RBI in 2004 and .305 with 23 homers and 116 RBI in 2005. In this time span, Matsui played in literally every single game.

Due to his very solid three years, as well as the enormous amount of money he brought in from the Japanese market, Matsui was rewarded with a four year $52 million contract.

Matsui started off the 2006 season just as he had finished off the previous one, hitting .302 with 8 homers 51 games into the season. Unfortunately, in a bizarre fielding incident, Matsui broke his wrist and was out for the remainder of the year. Matsui bounced back in 2007, hitting .285 with 25 homers and 103 RBI. After the season though, Matsui needed to have his left knee surgically repaired.

Matsui battled through numerous injuries in 2008, playing in only 93 games, but he did hit a respectable .294. He was unable to play much in the field, a sign of things to come. After this season, yet again he would have knee surgery, this time on the right.

Entering the final year of his contract in 2009, Matsui has unfortunately become a man with two surgically repaired knees, and is unable to play the field at all. This is very tough for the Yankees to clog up their DH spot when aging players such as Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, Alex Rodriguez and Jorge Posada could all use time off in the DH spot. Unfortunately, Matsui fills that spot everyday.

After going 4/5 last night, Matsui has given the team very good production from the DH spot this year hitting .269/.365/.516, including 19 homers. Matsui is a consummate professional and the Yankees organization, as well as myself, love the way he plays the game and handles himself in the clubhouse.

Unfortunately, with Jeter, A-Rod, Tex and Posada getting a year older (as well as a possible return of Johnny Damon), the Yankees simply cannot give a 36 year old full time DH a contract after the season. It simply cannot be done. They need to give some other players a rest every now and then.

During his time with the Yankees, Matsui has a career batting average of .292 and his 131 homers are the most for any Japanese born player and will only continue to increase as the year continues on.

My question is, what will Matsui do after the year is over? The Yankees are the only team he has ever known outside of the Yomiuri Giants. Would it be worth it for him to sign a 1 year deal with some random team to be their DH for a couple million dollars? He says he wants to stay in the MLB, and specifically with the Yankees, but I honestly would not be surprised if he went back to Japan.

What do you guys think? Am i completely wrong, will Matsui be a Yankee next year? Do you see him staying in America or do you think a return to Japan is possible?

All I know is for the past 7 years, I have watched a man come to an entirely new country and play the way the game is supposed to be played; and act the way a man is supposed to act. It is unfortunate he will not be back next year and he will surely be missed by me and many other Yankee fans as well. Lets just sit back and appreciate his play for the remainder of the year while we still can and for the time being, "Thank You, and Enjoy the Game".

Oh how the mighty have fallen

You all remember the Milwaukee Brewers last year. All year they were just out of the playoff race and suddenly, they traded for Carsten Charles Sabathia (C.C. to you and me). Sabathia came into Milwaukee and went 11-2 with an ERA of 1.65 and seven complete games.

Sabathia pitched so well, he got Milwaukee to finish with a record of 90-72, good enough for the NL Wild Card and the Brewers first playoff appearance since the 1980's.

Unfortunately for the Brewers and their fans, they were knocked out of the playoffs in the first round, but in their eyes, the season was still a victory. They were finally seen as real contenders and a team that could not be simply looked over as a team that couldn't compete.

Then, the off season came and not only did ace C.C. Sabathia leave via free agency, #2 starter Ben Sheets almost went to Texas via free agency, before they realized his shoulder was injured and even if he wanted to leave, he could not because he needed surgery and probably would not be able to pitch this year.

With Sheets not signing with a team, his Type A free agent status would not net them two draft picks. To make matters worse, with the Yankees signing of Mark Teixeira, the Brewers would not receive a 1st round draft pick for Sabathia, they would only receive a 2nd round and a supplemental round pick.

The Brewers used the off season to sign Braden Looper and re-sign Mike Cameron and signed Frank Catalanotto a couple months into the season. Not really the overhaul you would hope for when you lose your ace and your #2 starter who just had a year where he posted an ERA of 3.09.

The Brewers pitching staff, thanks to the wonderful return of young ace Yovani Gallardo, pitched above what was expected of them for the first two months of the season and gave fans hope that the Brewers could compete this year. They, then began pitching as they always have. Fans wanted to make the playoffs again and management was doing their best to make some moves.

They were connected to both Jake Peavy and Roy Halladay, but could not get the job done. A team that was one big move away from being a contender again was not stuck trading for only Felipe Lopez and David Weathers. They also recently claimed Doug Davis off of waivers, but they do not expect a deal to get done.

On top of all of this, their young stud of the past two years JJ Hardy has slumped miserably. The man who hit .277 with 26 homers in 2007 and .283 with 24 homers in 2008 has hit .229 this year, and was sent to AAA. The Brewers top prospect, Alcedis Escobar is now the SS and if you ask me, JJ Hardy will not be seen in a Brewers jersey next year (I expect a trade to the Red Sox)

Also, Bill Hall, the man who can play an above average 3B and hit 35 homers only a few years ago, has slumped so terribly that he is hitting only .201 and got designated for assignment, even though he is still owed over $8 million dollars next year.

On top of all of this, the team also recently fired their pitching coach.

So, the 2008 Milwaukee Brewers were the wild card winners and thrust back into the playoffs for the first time since the 80's .

The 2009 team, well, lets recap.

-They only received one 1st round draft pick when in all reality they should have received three. -They lost out on two aces during the trade deadline that they were going after.
-Their prized 26 year old shortstop has slumped so bad he has been sent to AAA and may never start for them again.
-They claimed a decent pitcher off waivers that even they do not expect to be able to sign.
-Their pitching coach got fired.
-Their 3B has performed so poorly, he and his $8.5 million 2010 contract were simply let go.

Currently the Brewers sit at 3 games under .500 and 7.5 games out of first place. 2009 was an amazing, exciting and fun season for the Brewers and it was fun while it lasted (and a few solid moves can make them contenders in 2010) but for the time being, the only fun you're gonna get in Milwaukee is if your clogging up your arteries with one of their many fine cheese-based food products.

Sorry Mets fans, time to look towards 2010

Hey guys, Mike here.

As we all know, two weeks ago when Omar Minaya was silent at the trade deadline (even though he should have been silent at the Tony Bernazard press conference), he was essentially admitting that the season was over.

This has not been said by him, but essentially, his job from here on out is to focus on 2010; that is, as long as he does not get fired.

The Mets have approximately $40 million coming off the books after this year is over, but also have about $10 million in raises, giving them $30 million to work with.

Not so fast....

Due to attendance not being great in this flailing economy, a new, expensive ballpark, and Bernie Madoff formerly at their side, it would seem as though the Mets will have to lower payroll next year. Lets give them $20 million to work with and see how we can fix this team.

Lets look how the team will be after the first day of free agency:

1B- Daniel Murphy (sorry guys)
2B- Luis Castillo (again, sorry. 2010 already looks terrible)
SS- A hopefully healthy Jose Reyes
3B- A hopefully more powerful David Wright
RF- Jeff Francoeur
CF- A hopefully healthy Carlos Beltran
LF- Fernando Martinez?
C- Omir Santos

OK, considering Daniel Murphy is batting .252 with a .316 OB%, as much as the Mets organization likes him, he is going to need to headline the bench. Omir Santos is loved by all, but he is not a starer. Fernando Martinez may have a bright future ahead of him, but there is no way he will go into the season as the starting LF.

So basically, the Mets need a left fielder, a first baseman, a catcher, and not to mention a #2/3 starter as well as bullpen arms, all with a shopping spree of $20 million to use.

Lets take this position by position and see what we can do Mets fans. Lets start with Catcher and look at notable names who will be free agents in 2010.

Rod Barajas, Jason Kendall, Ramon Castro, Benjie Molina, Jose Molina & Ivan Rodriguez.

Of these choices, I would sign Rod Barajas. He is making $2.5 million this year while hitting .241 with 10 homers. Not that good, but a decent amount of power for a guy who wont make much. Lets give him another $2.5 million deal, taking our money down to $17.5 million.

Moving onto First Base, we see: Carlos Delgado, Nick Johnson, Adam LaRoche and Kevin Millar as the most notable free agents.

Nick Johnson is a player who was linked to go to the Mets at the trade deadline, but obviously, he was sent to the Florida Marlins. Although he is a great fit with the Mets, rumor has it he is seeking a 2 Year deal at $10 million per year, way too much considering the limited funds of the Mets.

This may sound crazy, but I say the Mets should sign a make-good deal with the 38 year old Delgado. After playing in only 26 games this year (while hitting .298 w/4 homers), Delgado went down and is out for probably the remainder of the year. He, like many older players, may not want to leave New York, or the game of baseball in such a manner, and may sign a cost-effective deal and make a late-career come back of sorts to prove he can still play the game. A $4 million deal could get it done considering his age and injury history, taking us down to $13.5 to still work with.

Now we come to what I consider the most intriguing option, the left fielder. Lets look at the free agents:

Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, Chone Figgins, Mark DeRosa, Garrett Anderson, Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui (really, hes a left fielder?), Dave Roberts, Fernando Tatis, David Dellucci

I'll say this now, do not expect the Mets to be in on the big name free agents such as Holliday or Bay, they simply cannot afford it at this time unless they unload some major salary (and in my opinion, they shouldn't be in on them even if they could afford them).

I think the two men who could really help this team would be either Chone Figgins or Mark DeRosa. Both can play every single position on the field. If Delgado needs a day off, they can play first. Wright needs a rest, put them at third. Don't even have a left fielder, put them in left. They can go anywhere and hit respectively no matter what position they are at.

Figgins is batting .300 with year with 33 SB and leading the league with 87 runs scored. Mark DeRosa on the other hand battled an injury earlier in the year lowering his average to .258, but he is a career .277 hitter and has 21 homers already this year.

These guys can hit, they can field, and they can field anywhere. Imagine Miguel Cairo, only actually knowing how to make contact. The problem with these guys is they will cost a bit. Lets say the Mets sign the better player in Figgins and pay him $10 million; unfortunately, that leaves them with only $3.5 to sign a #2/3 starter and get some bullpen help.

Luckily for me (and the Mets, as well as every team willing to give the guy a shot), Justin Duchscherer is a free agent and will come cheap because he has been injured this entire year. He has shown in the past that he can pitch well, almost to the point of being an ace, as long as he can stay healthy. Lets give him the remaining $3.5 million and let the bullpen work itself out. Hopefully Putz comes back healthy next year, K-rod is one of the best closers in the game and the Mets do have a few pieces they can throw at the wall and then see what sticks. Also, lets not forget the trade market. Relievers are readily available and many good ones come cheap. Bullpens fluctuate so much from year to year, lets see what happens.

So lets see how we did. Here is our Mets team (even though I am a Yankee fan, I just dedicated a lot of my time to the Mets. I have no clue why).

C-Rod Barajas
1B-Carlos Delgado
2B-Luis Castillo
SS-Jose Reyes
3B-David Wright
RF- Jeff Francoeur
CF-Carlos Beltran
LF-Chone Figgins

With a 1/2 punch of Johan Santana and Justin Duchscherer, all while lowering the payroll by $10 million dollars. I'd say we did pretty good.

I am sorry for Mets fans that looking forward to next year is all you can do right now, and even though we worked out a pretty good team, it may not be enough to make the playoffs, but hey, payrolls can be shed (just look at the Toronto Blue Jays), and moves can be made that nobody say coming.

So what do you guys think? Are these moves acceptable or should we start over and make a whole new plan? Should we rebuild and see what maybe Johan can get us in a trade? Should we make a big trade or hang onto what little farm system we have left. Let me know what you think!

Happ can finally be Happ-y

His name is J.A. Happ and he is a proud member of the Philadelphia Phillies starting rotation. His record is 8-2 with a 2.74 ERA and he has had to prove himself time and time again this season. Here is a time line of how he got to where he currently is. First, it was at the beginning of the year when he lost out the 5th spot in the rotation to Chan Ho Park in Spring Training. Park pitched poorly though and proved to be the wrong choice (surprisingly). After a poor outing on May 17th, where he gave up five runs in 1.1 IP, Park was sent to the bullpen, where he pitched in 49 out of his 54 games last season. I can't really blame them for choosing Park originally though as they were probably afraid he might side kick them. Here is a video of what I mean.

Whatever you do, don't mess with the Koreans. I know first hand not to as I roomed with one for two years of my life.

Anyway back to my point. Happ was put into the rotation and pitched very well, but there was trouble on the horizon. Next there was the issue of when he was in the trade talks regarding Roy Halladay. He wouldn't have lost his job in Toronto as a starting pitcher, but he certainly would have been going to a worse team and probably a team that would rarely make the playoffs, if ever, as opposed to a team that may currently be the front-runners for the World Series.

Then was the issue of when the Phillies got Cliff Lee. People were again concerned that Happ would be included in that trade, but, yet again, Happ was safe.

Before Cliff Lee came to the Phillies though, they had signed the once great and future HOF pitcher, Pedro Martinez, who had pitched well in the WBC; Or at least good enough for the Phillies to notice. This left the Phillies with a six man rotation down the road when Martinez was ready to pitch again, something that major league teams do not do; another move must be made. They would now have to decide who was going to give up their spot in the rotation. It was not an issue that Charlie Manuel wanted to deal with. As he would continually say “Let me answer that later on,” he said. “I don’t feel like getting into that.”

In what could have been Happ's last appearance as a starter last Wednesday, he ended up pitching one of the best games of his career tossing a shutout against the Colorado Rockies in Philadelphia. As he threw his last pitch of the night the crowd was on their feet, as if they were sending a message to the organization that they wanted Happ to stay where he is. Well, as of last night the Phillies decided to keep Happ in the rotation and moved the almost 47 year old pitcher, Jamie Moyer to the bullpen. Moyer pitched well last year going 16-7 with a 3.71 ERA, which was his best season since 2003, when he won 21 games. Looking at this year though, things were quite different for Mr. Moyer. He has posted a 5.47 ERA and was allowing a HR per game. He does have ten wins though, which leads the team, but that was probably more a factor of his teams offense then it was of his pitching performance. In five of those wins, he allowed 4 runs or more and has only two games where he pitched 7 innings. My guess is his 7.20 ERA and 2 losses in 10 innings in the month of August didn't help his cause any.

I love this move for the simple fact that the Phillies finally did something most teams today refuse to do. If a player has been playing great all year and is getting paid nothing and is competing against a player getting paid millions more and playing badly, the player getting paid more will almost always get the playing time. Just look at what the Yankees did when Jason Giambi was hitting .170. I do understand why they do this, but I think it is the wrong way to go about it. Happ has proven himself a dozen times and is always in the spotlight if someone else needs a spot in the rotation. In fact, I'm sure his name will come up again when Brett Myers comes back into the picture.

Speaking of pictures, that’s J.A. Happ as a Roman Soldier and Kyle Kendrick looking dominatrix-y in his chaps, cod piece, chest thingee, cap, mask, and whip.







As always this has been, Corey Sobel, with a special report.

Is it time to PANIC?

Panic you say. Yes and now's the time to do something. The Red Sox are at a dilemma here. It's August and looking at what's been going on lately. Since the all star break they've won 8 out of their last 21 with five of those wins coming against the big bad Orioles. Plus, only 9 out of the 21 games have they given up four runs or less. Not a winning combination. What does this lead me to think? Maybe we should be concerned and sooner rather than later.

This series against the Yankees has shown me maybe more then any other that something needs to change within the organization. An addition of a pitcher would be great obviously since the John Smoltz project has failed miserably. Yes it was a good idea, but clearly it has not panned out the way the Red Sox thought it would. In his eight games started so far this season he has not pitched up to par. His ERA is at a lovely 8.33, his BAA is also wonderful at .343, and he has a minimal 1.70 WHIP. Not too shabby old friend. You hate to see a player, let alone a hall of fame pitcher end his career in this manor, but as we all know, all good things must come to an end.

Anyway, back to my original point. The Red Sox need a pitcher. Maybe the addition of the fantastic Paul Byrd will be the answer they are looking for. But for some reason I doubt that. The real answer here may be to just wait it out until Tim Wakefield comes back into the rotation. The only issue with that may be that he may come back too late or even not at all till next season at this rate.

Hopefully the Red Sox don't get swept in this four game series. Something that has not happened in 22 years and the offense is a big reason my it may happen. Ellsbury and Pedroia seem to be the only players who are getting anything going. In the series they have gone 8 for 29, getting half of the Red Sox hits, while the rest of the team is 8 for 74. Pretty bad to say the least. I'm predicting a win tonight though, mostly because of who is pitching for each team. I'm sorry, but if I had my choice of pitchers today between Andy Pettitte or John Lester pitching it would have to be Lester and not because I'm a Red Sox fan. I'm just basing it off of their seasons as a whole and how they have done in the last few years.

One solution may be if the Red Sox can acquire Christian Guzman, who could fill in at SS till they find a better replacement. He is hitting .315 on the season and has hit over .300 in the past three seasons. He could also help shore up their defense as well.

As always this has been, Corey Sobel, with a special report.

Official August Moves Thread

Official thread for August Moves
I am going to create this post which will be upated whenever moves are made in August so I don't have to continually do new posts.

The Yankees acquired Chad Gaudin and his career 4.58 ERA and signed Russ Ortiz and his career ERA of 4.48 to a minor league deal. Neither of these guys will help much, but it gives the Yankees more depth and just pushes Kei Igawa further back on the depth chart.

The A's released Jason Giambi and his DL-ridden .193 BA

The Twins acquired Carl Pavano and his 5.37 ERA

Told you guys there were still plenty of exciting moves still left to come in August!

On a side note, the Red Sox also signed Paul Byrd, and while he isn't amazing, he actually can contribute to a winning ball club.

More updates as they come.

Updates:
The Rays traded for Gregg Zaun. hitting .244 but with a .355 OB%, Zaun is a decent back-up and a very solid "Jake Taylor" of Major League type influence on the team and the clubhouse.

In a shocking move, the Chicago White Sox claimed Alex Rios off wavers. In a smart move, the Blue Jays just let them take him and the 5 years and $60 million left on his contract. After the Alex Rios and Scott Rolen trades, the Blue Jays have no saved $71 million over the next five years, and people thought the only way they could shed salary was by trading Roy Halladay.....

Red Sox got Alex Gonzalez from the Reds for a minor leaguer.
He is terrible.

Russ Ortiz, thanks to a clause in his contract, released himself from the Yankees because he was not called up to the majors. He is now looking to sign with a contender. Good luck.

John Smoltz was released by the Red Sox.

The Tigers traded a single-A guy for Aubrey Huff. Although Huff is not having a year like he was last year, he can stand at multiple positions and has a decent bat. Considering they were looking for a bat and didn't give up much at all, this is a very solid addition for the Tigers.

Has Melky finally become the player everybody thinks he is?

Hey guys, Mike here.

You all know my thoughts on Melky Cabrera. He is an excellent 4th outfielder, excellent. Especially considering he can play above average defense in all 3 OF positions and he also has a fantastic throwing arm.

But is he a starting CF? Up until this year I would have said no, but after the year he is finally putting together, I will change my answer to possibly. You all know the story of Melky Cabrera; in April, he is probably the greatest player in the history of the world. Then May rolls around and because of his amazing April, it seems as though he is playing well enough. Then June comes and people are starting to notice he isn't playing well anymore. July comes and people get really annoyed, and then in the case of last year, he keep playing so poorly, he is actually sent down to AAA.

Melky has also never been one to draw a walk (just like his buddy Robbie Cano), so even in a year where he would hit .280, he really wouldn't get on base enough to justify him being in the line-up everyday.

This year, things seem different. Melky is actually a real switch hitter (finally hitting lefties, unlike the Wilson Betemit's of the world. Just because you can stand on both side of the plate, that does not mean you're a switch hitter), and although streaky, he has maintained a solid level of production.

His triple slash rates this year are .292/.355/.463 while the average major league CF has rates of .268/.337/.422. Very solid for a player who will be turning 25 this month.

The Yankees were very patient with this kid and it may, may, have paid off. This can be a fluke year, remember, he has been very streaky. Only two weeks ago he was hitting below .270, but again, a hot streak got him above .290 (including a cycle yesterday). For all we know, he could hit a cold spot tomorrow and finish the season at .260, but for now, I have no problem letting the kid play a little ball.

Again, I am not sold on him being an everyday CF quite yet, and I also don't really like him all that much as a person. He annoys me, should know English by now and should not stick his tongue out at the camera if it is on him during the National Anthem. That is how 12 year old's and drunk 50 year old's whose life goal is to get on the jumbo tron do. That's not how you act when you're a professional ballplayer playing for the greatest franchise in sports, let alone any professional franchise. Actually, just don't stick you're tongue out at all. You do it way too much and it's annoying. Also, he has thrown to the wrong base a couple of times in recent games, another thing that cannot be done, but that's just me complaining.

Brett Gardner too I think surprised a lot of people this year (not me, you all know I was always high on Gardner), but with him being injured for the time being, I am not calling for a new CF. If Austin Jackson is not ready to play in the majors next year, Melky and Gardner are going to be playing big roles again with the team and I will be very interested to see how Melky does.

So what do you guys think? I know a lot of you have always been high on Melky, but does this season only confirm what you always thought, or do you still think there's a chance he can hit a slump, or, go back to his old ways next year and slump then? Also, with Damon and Matsui leaving next year, and Jason Bay and Matt Holliday free agents, Austin Jackson getting ready to come up and Swish, Gardner and Melky the only OF's under contract next year, what do you think the OF is going to look like next year?

Update- August 13th

Well, after finally going easy on Melky for the first time in a long time, Melky has made me remember why I was never in his corner in the first place. Since writing this blog 10 days ago, Melky has gone 6/40 and has lowered his batting average 20 points to .272.

Keep up the good work.

Holding the Yankees for Ransom

Hey guys, Mike here.

Ok, so I recently found out that someone within the Yankees organization is actually a murderer. I don't know who, or why, and I don't know who they murdered, all I know is that Cody Ransom is the only person in the world who saw it, and he will keep him mouth quiet, as long as he is kept on the major league roster. I would personally rather see Brian Cashman be locked away for 10-15, then see Cody Ransom have one more at bat with this team.

This will be quick, but look at these stats.

.200/.268/..347- Season stats
.200-.289-.415- Season vs. Righties
.176-.243-.265 - Season vs. Lefties (as a right handed hitter, these numbers should be better that his stats vs. righties; as a professional baseball player, they should be better than what I could do)
.121-.237-.242 - Season with the bases empty
.217-.280-.348 - Season with RISP
Finally, two less meaningful, yet still interesting stats.

When leading off an inning, that batter is supposed to try to get things started for the team. In 11 plate appearances leading off an inning, Ransom's numbers are mind numbingly bad- .000-.000-.000 Not one single hit.

Also, when seeing a pitcher for the first time in a game, Ransom is batting 000-.136-.000 . Again, not one single hit. (On a side note, thanks to http://www.riveraveblues.com/ for so easily sorting out all of these statistics)

It doesn't take a genius to understand why Cody Ransom has been on the roster up to this point, with A-Rod resting once a week, he was literally the only person in the organization who could play 3B, but now, we have Jerry Hairston Jr. Ransom played 1st yesterday? 1st?? You are just asking for a loss Girardi! With Tex DH'ing, you can easily slot Hinske (who has been killing the ball as a Yankee) into RF and put Swish at 1st. Anybody would be better than Ransom and now that we have Hairston, we don't need Ransom. Shelley Duncan would be a fine replacement. He can play RF, DH, 1B and obviously be a decent late game pinch hitter vs. lefties.

I am not saying Shelley Duncan is a great player, I'm not even saying he is a good player, but he will not give away outs in the manner that Ransom does. With A-rod DH'ing today, Hairston is playing 3b, which clearly shows he is the new back up 3B, so what is Ransom doing on the team?

Somebody please tell me!!!!!


Update- Wednesday August 5th

Cody Ransom has been Designated for Assignment.

That is all.

Update- Wednesday August 12th

Well, just because he is that terrible, the Yankees could not trade Cody Ransom and he cleared waivers. Yes, he cleared waivers. Anybody could have had him and all it would have cost was paying a month and a half of a minor league salary, and nobody wanted that responsibility.

Due to this, Cody Ransom has been able to be sent to AAA Scranton/Wilkes Barre and there is a chance that he will be seen in a Yankee uniform again someday, possibly next month with the September call-ups.

When will this horror movie end??

Oh, those silly Indians were stolen from again

-Don't look so grim, You're heading to Boston!!

As I was coming out of the movie theater, I received a text from an anonymous source informing me, Victor Martinez has been traded to the Boston Red Sox from the Cleveland Indians. The trade of V-Mart is one that helps now and in the future and filled their biggest need. A BAT. It was an addition that I hoped would happen and now has come true. I guess the Red Sox finally listened to me.

In this trade, they gave away 3 players; Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone, and Bryan Price.

Who these players were;

Justin Masterson was in his second year with Boston and hadn't really been getting the job done. A pitcher who could be used as a starter or reliever. If you combine his two seasons, it's like having one full season. For example, in his combined two seasons he pitched in 160 innings, had 135 SO, went 9-8, with a WHIP of 1.28, and an ERA of 3.76. He will be somewhat missed, but overall not a big loss. He still has potential to be better, but not worth the wait for what they got.

Nick Hagadone is a 23 year old left handed starting pitcher, who is in his 3rd year in single A ball with the Red Sox. Originally drafted by the Mariners in the 2004 draft and then again in 2007 by the Red Sox, in his 3 minor league seasons, he was 1-4, and in 59 IP, had a 1.82 ERA, 77 SO, allowed only 1 HR, a WHIP of 1.011, and started no more then ten games yet in a season. Losing a player at his age, still in single A ball does not phase me in the least. He did have Tommy John surgery back before the 2008 season started. Which is the main reason probably why not too many people have heard of this kid before and is still projected to be good number two if he can get healthy.

Bryan Price is another minor league starting pitcher, also who is in his 3rd year at single A ball. I could tell you more about him, but I think this link could do a better job. http://www.soxprospects.com/players/price-bryan.htm

Again, another player who giving away is not a big concern of mine.

Martinez gives the Red Sox a lot of depth that they didn't have before and here's how. They now have a player who can play Catcher, First base, and obviously, DH. This allows them a lot of versatility so they can give either Varitek/Ortiz/Youkilis a day off, if needed. If Ortiz fails to get back to form when his contract expires they can now replace his bat with a supposedly, steroid free player. He's a switch hitter; always a good thing. This year he is batting .284 and is on pace for 24 HR and 108 RBI. His career avg. is .297 and averages 20 HR and 102 RBI per season. Pretty darn good for a catcher if you ask me.

There is a club option next year for a very reasonable $7 million. And maybe this is one of the biggest reasons to acquire Martinez. That in 2 years from now, it may not be mandatory to go after/fight the Yankees for Joe Mauer; when he becomes a free agent. Assuming that the Red Sox can/will resign Martinez. Not to say that I wouldn't want to have both of those players, but the Red Sox do have options now.

Now that I think about this trade, it may have been one of the biggest steals that happened this season. You didn't have to end up giving away any of the players you would have if the Red Sox had acquired Halladay. The Red Sox did originally offer the Indians, Clay Buchholz for Victor Martinez straight up and were declined. I wonder if the Indians would have taken that deal now. The players the Red Sox did end up giving away barely affect them. They filled a need with a big bat. They are now not obligated to resign Jason Varitek for $5 million and can let him walk if he doesn't resign for the $3 million player option. He can still earn the extra $2 million, which is based off of performance bonuses. If he plays 80 games next year, he will earn an extra $400,000 and for every ten games after that he earns another $400,000. Wow, I sure would like to play ten games to make $400,000. This spot in the lineup was one of their weakest spots this season and now has been fixed. Although looking at how Varitek did last year, it could have been worse. This has to be quite the blow to the 12 year veteran though, who back on May 20th of this year, finalized his divorce. You have to wonder if that played a part into why he played so poorly last season. Looking deeper into this, we find another interesting fact. Varitek married his ex Karen in 1996 the year before he became a major league player and gets divorced as his career may be coming to an end. Maybe I'm reading too into this, but it has to be noted and if nothing else just something to think about folks.

On another note, the Red Sox traded newly acquired Adam LaRoche, who was only here for a little more than a week (a move I would expect to see from the Pirates), to the Atlanta Braves for Casey Kotchman, but lets take a closer look into what happened here. Two years ago, the Braves traded Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Elvis Andrus, Neftali Feliz and Matt Harrison to the Rangers for Ron Mahay and Mark Teixeira. Teixeira played in Atlanta for 1/3 of a season and 2/3 of the next season. Then, they sent him packing for Casey Kotchman and Stephen Marek.

And finally here we are.

Also take a look at the history of Adam LaRoche. He came up through the Braves system and in 2004 platooned with Julio Franco for two years. In 2006 became the everyday first basemen for the Braves. After his first full season, he was traded to the Pirates for Mike González and Brent Lillibridge. Then in 2009 was traded to the Red Sox for ten days and went full circle right back to where his career started. He was also the first player to have a HR taken away due to the instant replay.Looking back at how things turned out, would you follow what the Braves did? I'm not sure I would have, but for what they got in the end it looks like they did pretty well for themselves.

It looks like the Red Sox did this deal because they now have Martinez (not Pedro), who supplies them with a bat; and figured they needed someone who plays a little better defense, so they went out and got Kotchman. Another benefit of this trade is that they may have saved themselves a little bit of money. Kotchman is earning $2,885,000 this year, while LaRoche earns $7,050,000. I don't know how that would break down by the end of the year with the money they're owed, but if they can save some bucks then good for them. Plus I would rather have a player who can come off the bench and get on base more and play good defense, then a player who gets on less, but gets a bigger hit; because how often would that player get the chance to hit the ball anyway with this stacked Red Sox line-up?

And finally to my closing note. Probably the funniest and best part of the trade is how tomorrow night, August 1, 2009, in Cleveland is...yep, you guessed it, Victor Martinez, BOBBLEHEAD NIGHT. Congratulations to the Cleveland Indians organization who really messed this one up.-

-As always this has been Corey Sobel, with a special report.

AN UPDATE:

For those of you who did not believe me when I said this deal would be a good one, here is how he has helped the Boston Red Sox out so far this year.

In 56 games for the Red Sox, Martinez hit .336 with eight homers, 41 RBIs and a .912 OPS.

Unless you expecting something better you can't be disappointed with what he has delivered.

Talkin' Baseball

As I have mentioned in blogs in the past, I would like this blog to be collaborative. I have numerously asked guests to post blogs, and outside of Tram's live blogs of games, nobody has taken me up on.

Now, Corey Sobel of Position Scarcity and I, obviously of Mike's NYY Blog have joined forces to form a blog the likes if which have never been seen before. Since we are on the baseball talk show Talkin' Baseball every Wednesday night from 8-10 on http://www.wcwpsports.com/, it was obvious what the blog would be named.

Enjoy it everyone, and please, don't be afraid to contribute. We like all the opinions we can get.