May good fortune shine upon you all during this holiday season (even those of you who are Giants, Padres, Rockies, D-Backs, or Yankees fans - though I hope you get stuck with big contracts for poor players and overpaid relievers).
All that's left on my Christmas wish list now is a World Series...
Oh, and a change in our scheduled opening day left fielder...
Monday, December 24, 2007
Friday, December 21, 2007
Mitchell Report
Ball or Strike:
Sen. George Mitchell's report on performance enhancing drugs in baseball has been out for over a week now and I am really getting tired of hearing all these people defending players, damning players, defending the use of steroids, etc. Here's my take:
IF the players named actually can be confirmed users beyond all reasonable doubt, they should suffer the same consequences that Pete Rose did. Ban them from baseball, no hall of fame. Pete was one of the greatest hitters of all time, no questions asked. He gambled, he had a gambling addiction, he messed up, and he did it so that he could make a few extra bucks. Did his gambling affect his play? Who knows. Players who use steroids do it for the same reason Pete gambled; to make a few extra bucks. They broke the law, their punishment should be no different. Sure, Barry Bonds was a good hitter before he started juicing. Was he a 750 HR+ hitter? No way. When he was with the Pirates, he had 2 seasons out of 7 in which he hit more than 25 HR (one of which was his last season there), and his career high was 34. Since going to San Francisco, he's had only 1 season out of 15 in which he's hit less than 25, and he only played 14 games that season. He's had only 5 seasons out of 15 in which he's hit less than 35 HR, 7 in which he's hit 40+HR. Carry out his averages in Pittsburgh over the 22 years he's played, and he would've hit 553 HR by now. Hall of fame career, for sure, but not enough to break Hank Aaron's record. If Roger Clemens used, would he have won 354 games without it? If he didn't, put him down as one of the greatest.
I'm not saying that the juice would make any average player into a Hall of Famer, but it obviously makes the good great and the great greatest. It's enough to make a 93 mph fastball pitcher into a 96 mph fastball pitcher, a career doubles hitter into a career home run hitterd. It won't make anyone see the ball better, swing sooner, locate better, or break the curveball off harder. Baseball is not learned, it's perfected.
That said, MLB needs to make an attempt to verify the claims made in the Mitchell report. For the sake of the game, the fans, and the players who remained clean throughout all of this. And they need to make HUGE strides to make sure that this doesn't happen again! If they do, this is a strike in my book. If the game turns away and ignores the past, ball.
Sen. George Mitchell's report on performance enhancing drugs in baseball has been out for over a week now and I am really getting tired of hearing all these people defending players, damning players, defending the use of steroids, etc. Here's my take:
IF the players named actually can be confirmed users beyond all reasonable doubt, they should suffer the same consequences that Pete Rose did. Ban them from baseball, no hall of fame. Pete was one of the greatest hitters of all time, no questions asked. He gambled, he had a gambling addiction, he messed up, and he did it so that he could make a few extra bucks. Did his gambling affect his play? Who knows. Players who use steroids do it for the same reason Pete gambled; to make a few extra bucks. They broke the law, their punishment should be no different. Sure, Barry Bonds was a good hitter before he started juicing. Was he a 750 HR+ hitter? No way. When he was with the Pirates, he had 2 seasons out of 7 in which he hit more than 25 HR (one of which was his last season there), and his career high was 34. Since going to San Francisco, he's had only 1 season out of 15 in which he's hit less than 25, and he only played 14 games that season. He's had only 5 seasons out of 15 in which he's hit less than 35 HR, 7 in which he's hit 40+HR. Carry out his averages in Pittsburgh over the 22 years he's played, and he would've hit 553 HR by now. Hall of fame career, for sure, but not enough to break Hank Aaron's record. If Roger Clemens used, would he have won 354 games without it? If he didn't, put him down as one of the greatest.
I'm not saying that the juice would make any average player into a Hall of Famer, but it obviously makes the good great and the great greatest. It's enough to make a 93 mph fastball pitcher into a 96 mph fastball pitcher, a career doubles hitter into a career home run hitterd. It won't make anyone see the ball better, swing sooner, locate better, or break the curveball off harder. Baseball is not learned, it's perfected.
That said, MLB needs to make an attempt to verify the claims made in the Mitchell report. For the sake of the game, the fans, and the players who remained clean throughout all of this. And they need to make HUGE strides to make sure that this doesn't happen again! If they do, this is a strike in my book. If the game turns away and ignores the past, ball.
Getting Started....
People keep telling me that I should get into writing all of the many opinions, views, and analyses that I have on this game, this team, this passion of mine. So here we go.
Andruw Jones signing: Yes, $18.1 million/year is a lot to pay for a guy who hit just .222 last year. But, in the midst of that TERRIBLE batting average is yet another gold glove, 26 HR, 94 RBI, and an impact in the middle of the Dodger lineup. Note: I did not say impact bat, I said impact. Here's why: we have to consider the huge effect that he will have on all of the hitters around him at the same time. To do that, I should state that this is how I see the Dodgers lineup starting out this April: Furcal, Pierre, Loney, Jones, Kent, Martin, Kemp, 3B, P- This is not necessarily how I think it should be, but how I think it will be. Loney's got protection in the 3 hole, he'll be pitched to, which translates into higher power numbers this year. Andruw has a threat behind him in Kent. Sure, Jeff doesn't have the power that he put up in years past, but he is still a SERIOUS RBI threat. Jeff Kent is protected by Russell Martin, Martin by Kemp, etc. Additionally, Andruw provides guidance, leadership, and a GREAT arm in an outfield that was weak at best last year. His impact on the young outfielders in Atlanta and the way that they handled business was immeasurable. If he has that same defensive impact on Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, and Delwyn Young, he's worth every penny. Strike
Hiroki Kuroda: I could sit here and quote stats all day long, but the fact of the matter is that his stats in Japan do not matter at all. He was good in Japan, but how that translates to the Major Leagues remains to be seen. Last year, 3 pitchers made the jump across the Pacific with varying success. Dice-K, Kei Igawa, and Hideki Okajima all experienced varying degrees of success, none of which were really relative to what they did in Japan. That being said, if his pitches/"toughness"/control can translate to the Majors, he'll be a solid #4 starter. Signing him means we don't have to rely on Esteban Loaiza or Jason Schmidt for the middle of our rotation. I certainly wouldn't mind if either of them had a major comeback this year, but I'm not counting on it. If need be, we have a couple minor leaguers that could definitely suffice in the #5 starter role. If Schmidt can regain form, a rotation of Penny, Lowe, Billingsley, Kuroda, and Schmidt is better than Arizona's Webb, Haren, Davis, Johnson, Gonzales. Certainly better than whatever San Diego can put on the field beyond Peavy, Young, and Maddux. Does San Francisco have a rotation? Colorado seems to always be the unknown. Strike
Final strike: Juan Pierre needs to be traded. Eat half the contract, it's still less costly than having him out there. Ethier is a prototype #2 hitter, and an immeasurably better outfielder. He takes pitches, he's careful, he's got 18 HR power, and he doesn't ground into too many double plays. With him in the 2 slot, Furcal would get the 110 runs scored that we need from him.
Andruw Jones signing: Yes, $18.1 million/year is a lot to pay for a guy who hit just .222 last year. But, in the midst of that TERRIBLE batting average is yet another gold glove, 26 HR, 94 RBI, and an impact in the middle of the Dodger lineup. Note: I did not say impact bat, I said impact. Here's why: we have to consider the huge effect that he will have on all of the hitters around him at the same time. To do that, I should state that this is how I see the Dodgers lineup starting out this April: Furcal, Pierre, Loney, Jones, Kent, Martin, Kemp, 3B, P- This is not necessarily how I think it should be, but how I think it will be. Loney's got protection in the 3 hole, he'll be pitched to, which translates into higher power numbers this year. Andruw has a threat behind him in Kent. Sure, Jeff doesn't have the power that he put up in years past, but he is still a SERIOUS RBI threat. Jeff Kent is protected by Russell Martin, Martin by Kemp, etc. Additionally, Andruw provides guidance, leadership, and a GREAT arm in an outfield that was weak at best last year. His impact on the young outfielders in Atlanta and the way that they handled business was immeasurable. If he has that same defensive impact on Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, and Delwyn Young, he's worth every penny. Strike
Hiroki Kuroda: I could sit here and quote stats all day long, but the fact of the matter is that his stats in Japan do not matter at all. He was good in Japan, but how that translates to the Major Leagues remains to be seen. Last year, 3 pitchers made the jump across the Pacific with varying success. Dice-K, Kei Igawa, and Hideki Okajima all experienced varying degrees of success, none of which were really relative to what they did in Japan. That being said, if his pitches/"toughness"/control can translate to the Majors, he'll be a solid #4 starter. Signing him means we don't have to rely on Esteban Loaiza or Jason Schmidt for the middle of our rotation. I certainly wouldn't mind if either of them had a major comeback this year, but I'm not counting on it. If need be, we have a couple minor leaguers that could definitely suffice in the #5 starter role. If Schmidt can regain form, a rotation of Penny, Lowe, Billingsley, Kuroda, and Schmidt is better than Arizona's Webb, Haren, Davis, Johnson, Gonzales. Certainly better than whatever San Diego can put on the field beyond Peavy, Young, and Maddux. Does San Francisco have a rotation? Colorado seems to always be the unknown. Strike
Final strike: Juan Pierre needs to be traded. Eat half the contract, it's still less costly than having him out there. Ethier is a prototype #2 hitter, and an immeasurably better outfielder. He takes pitches, he's careful, he's got 18 HR power, and he doesn't ground into too many double plays. With him in the 2 slot, Furcal would get the 110 runs scored that we need from him.
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