SB Nation - Russ Ortiz

Astros Roster Breakdown: The 2008 Offseason

davoag — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:00:23 -0000

by Pat Sullivan - AP

Look, waaay in the back...It's Ed Wade!

Let's start the week off by looking at what the Astros did before and during the 2009 season. No major trades went down, nor were there any major signings. In fact, it sounds much like I'm sure this offseason will. Please give me your own take on the moves in the comments and what grade you'd give to Ed Wade for last season.

Move One: Signed Mike Hampton - The lefty Rob Lowe came at a bargain, earning 2 million dollars with 2 million in performance bonuses. I'm not sure if he met those, though. Hampton proved to be just what we thought he'd be: a little below league average and not very durable. For the money, though? You're not going to get much more.

Move Two: Signed Ivan Rodriguez - As a catcher with the Astros, it's fair to say Pudge failed. He started enough to break the record, but was pretty terrible when he did play. His OPS+ of 75 seemed to belie what fans saw on the field. It appeared that Pudge was having a meaningful impact on games, though his stat showed differently. Look at his splits in close and late situations, though: .359/.388/.406. Go even deeper, and you can see his numbers in high leverage situations: .280/.313/.320. Of course, this was offset by the fact that Rodriguez struck out all three times before getting to the late innings. He was a frustrating player, but his signing wasn't terrible, just ill-conceived.

Move Three: Signed Jason Michaels - Another guy who should have been better than he was. His career average of .269 should have made the Astros bench stronger, but Michaels couldn't put it together and struggled for much of the season. It also didn't help that he wasn't the best defensive replacement as a fourth outfielder. Still, who else were you going to get for 750K?

Move Four: Signed Russ Ortiz - With Hampton, he formed the "Let's Hope the Old Pitchers Can Revive With Us...Oh, Wait, HGH and Steroids are Banned...We're Screwed" duo. It's not the catchiest of names, but it is effective.

Move Five: Re-signed Doug Brocail - Doug was a pleasant surprise in 2008, but injuries derailed him last season. Who'd have predicted that the 42-year old reliever would have injury trouble? They're usually so reliable...Considering Brocail had injury trouble two years before, the Astros did well by stocking up on relievers with minor league deals, just in case. Was it 2.75 million well spent? Probably not.

Move Six: Re-signed LaTroy Hawkins - As I mentioned in my reliever rundown, Hawkins proved to be a reliable reliever for a second straight year. Whether this was due to the league he was in or to some sort of mechanical adjustment, the Astros have more than reaped the reward for a 3.5 million dollar contract.

Move Seven: Claimed Jeff Fulchino - Waiver claims like this show just good your advance scouts and major league scouts have to be. Fulchino provided a nice addition to the bullpen when Backe and Brocail both got hurt. Plus, Fulchino came much, much cheaper than either Hawkins, Valverde or Brocail. Oh, by the way, according to FanGraphs, he was also worth 3.4 million, which is more than all three of those relievers combined.

Move Eight: Signed Aaron Boone - I won't be glib here, since Boone had to go through too much this season. I respect the hell out of him for coming back and playing late in the season, but the Astros had to have wanted more out of him on the left side of the infield than they got. Still, here's hoping Boone continues to be in good health and can be a productive player, if he so chooses.

Midseason moves

Move Nine: Claimed Chris Coste - The former Phillie probably wishes he were in the World Series right now instead of the unemployment line. He should have been a lefty specialist off the bench, but hit worse against lefties than righties. Coste also didn't provide the pop the Astros needed when Berkman went down with an injury. Would they have been better served calling up Mark Saccomanno?

Move Ten: Traded away Ivan Rodriguez for Jose Vallejo and Matt Nevarez - This trade would have looked even better if the Rangers had made the playoffs and had to throw in another player. Still, the Astros basically paid 1.5 million for these two prospects. Not too shabby...

Move Eleven: Traded Drew Sutton for Jeff Keppinger - Boone's heart condition probably necessitated this trade to shore up the left side of the infield. As one of the commenters pointed out in the Mackanin post last week, Keppinger was only played at short after Mackanin put him there. Kepp did an okay job filling in for both Tejada and Blum. This trade happened before Chris Johnson broke his hand, but was certainly fortuitous. The Astros really didn't have anyone who could fill in for Blum on a regular basis.

Move Twelve: Claimed German Duran - This was a move for next season. We'll have to wait to see if Duran can contribute before passing judgement on it.

Overall, it was a mixed bag for GM Ed Wade. He made all the moves he could with no budget, tinkering around the margins and getting somewhat solid players. In both trades, it appears he got value, as Kepp is a good bench player and Drew Sutton didn't make much of an impact in Cincy, getting 66 big-league at-bats with an OPS+ of 68.

The Pudge signing was mandated by Drayton (I think), but give Wade credit for standing up to his owner enough to flip Rodriguez for some value. As disappointing as 2009 was in so many ways, Wade hasn't been among them. He's proven he can let Bobby Heck work his magic in the draft and can make those little moves that Gerry Hunsicker used to make so well.

Overall grade: B

Astros Roster Breakdown: The Starters

davoag — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:49:44 -0000

More photos » by Dino Vournas - AP

Roy Oswalt, in a rare good mood

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To lead off the starters section, I wanted to focus a little on Roy Oswalt. The soon-to-be 32-year old had his worst season as a professional, but was that a sign of aging and decline, or just a bump in the road?

His BABiP shows he wasn't unlucky in 2009 and was right in line with his career average. He also didn't throw more pitchers per plate appearance than he has in his career, while getting the most swinging strikes he's had since 2004. He did have a slight dip in his percentage of strikeouts that were looking, but since his swing and miss percentage didn't change, I think that was more statistical noise than anything.

You can't even blame injuries for hampering his stuff, because his fastball velocity was the same as it has been for the past few years. In fact, it actually ticked up a notch, but that's probably because of the only significant difference in his performance this season, a 5% drop in the number of fastballs he threw. Oswalt supplemented with more sliders and changeups. So, speed was not an issue...was something wrong with his movement? I wish I were smart enough to put together those cool scatter charts using the PitchF/X data, but I'm not there yet. I'd really like to see if he lost movement or late life on his fastball to determine if that's what the injuries robbed him of.

Other than possibly that, it appears his main problem may have been his attitude. Clashing so publicly and so often with Cecil Cooper, Roy just didn't give off the vibes of a guy playing his best. I'm sure he was playing his hardest, since he seems to have only one speed in that regard. But I wonder if he was mentally there this season. It's the one thing we can't really quantify, attitude.

Hear that, Brad Mills? Keep The Wizard happy next season and he'll bounce back.

Onto the rest of the starting rotation after the jump...

Roy Oswalt, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 8-6, 181 1/3 IP, 4.12 ERA, 30 GS, 19 HR, 138 strikeouts, 42 walks, 1.24 WHIP, 101 ERA+

FIP: 3.76

Average Game Score: 53

BABiP:.305

GB/FB: 1.21

Pitching Runs Created: 70

Notes: Since we've already talked about Roy-Boy's career trajectory, let's focus in on his 2009 season. Is this just the pitcher Roy is now? He struggled with getting any kind of decision all season, finishing with 16 non-decisions. His BABiP was right in line with normal luck, and he still got plenty of ground balls. The concerning part is his strikeout total, but as I said, that's been pretty steady for the past four seasons. His FIP shows he should have had a better ERA, but it would still have been his highest in his career. Roy was one of the main players disappointed in Cooper. Hopefully, he'll be motivated in 2010, because with Roy feeling right and Wandy pitching well, we will have a nice front end to the rotation. About that back end, though...

Wandy Rodriguez, LHP

2009 Season Stats: 14-12, 205 2/3 IP, 3.02 ERA, 33 GS, 21 HR, 193 strikeouts, 63 walks, 1.24 WHIP, 138 ERA+

FIP: 3.54

Average Game Score: 57

BABiP:.306

GB/FB: 1.21

Pitching Runs Created:100

Notes: Wandy was the best pitcher on the Astros staff last season. To put it in perspective, the difference between his and Roy's PRC was Mike Hampton. Maybe overly simple, but pretty amazing, no? Wandy's BABiP showed he wasn't just lucky to pitch this well and his strikeout total is very impressive, especially for a lefty. You'd like to see a few fewer walks, but that's just quibbling. The other interesting thing is his game scores. At 57, it was the highest of any of the starters and showed just how good he was game-to-game. His home/away splits were still very pronounced, though his strikeout rate was about the same. Two full runs of ERA though? For Wandy to take that next step to be an ace, he needs to perform better in road games.

Brian Moehler, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 8-12, 154 2/3 IP, 5.47 ERA, 29 GS, 21 HR, 91 strikeouts, 51 walks, 1.53 WHIP, 76 ERA+

FIP: 4.75

Average Game Score: 44

BABiP:.325

GB/FB: 1.25

Pitching Runs Created: 39

Notes: Moehler started the third-most games on the team last season. The trouble was, he did not perform like a third starter. Though his FIP was lower than his ERA and his BABiP meant he was a little unlucky, Moehler was more bad than good. His strikeouts and walks were both not where they should be. Though he had a good G/F ratio, his average game score shows he was a below league average starter in most of his outings. Much was made about a few of his starts at the beginning and end of the season blowing his ERA up too high. If you added 50 points to his total game score, he still would be well belew the the baseline. As a back-end starter? Moehler probably is useful, but will be recovering from a knee injury he had surgery on. Still, for 3 million? He's not a bad option.

Mike Hampton, LHP

2009 Season Stats: 7-10, 112 IP, 5.30 ERA, 21 GS, 13 HR, 74 strikeouts, 37 walks, 1.55 WHIP, 78 ERA+

FIP: 4.57

Average Game Score: 45

BABiP:.322

GB/FB: 1.78

Pitching Runs Created: 30

Notes: Hampy did just what we thought he'd do, getting a ton of ground balls and not really overpowering anyone. Oh, and getting hurt. He did that too. It's a little surprising Hampton gave up as many home runs as he did, but it did appear this experiment failed.

Felipe Paulino, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 3-11, 97 2/3 IP, 6.27 ERA, 17 GS, 20 HR, 93 strikeouts, 37 walks, 1.67 WHIP, 66 ERA+

FIP: 5.11

Average Game Score: 45

BABiP:.368

GB/FB: 1.08

Pitching Runs Created: 24

Notes: Obviously, anytime a hot, young prospect makes his debut and promptly posts a 6+ ERA, it's hard to be very excited. I still think his performance was somewhat affected by recovering from his 2008 injury, even if only slightly. His strikeouts numbers were great, though he gave up too many hits to win consistently. Paulino is too talented not to win more than three games next season, but it may take him a while to adjust. The Astros would pay more on the open market for a pitcher without nearly the upside of Paulino.

Russ Ortiz, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 3-6, 85 2/3 IP, 5.57 ERA, 13 GS, 8 HR, 65 strikeouts, 48 walks, 1.67 WHIP, 75 ERA+

FIP: 4.61

Average Game Score: 42

BABiP:.330

GB/FB: 1.62

Pitching Runs Created: 23

Notes: Ouch. The positives? Ortiz only gave up eight home runs and had a nice G/F ratio of 1.62. That's about it, though, as his nice start gave way to a rough time in the rotation. Ortiz wasn't as bad as his ERA indicated, but neither was he very good. He was hittable and probably was best as a swingman in the bullpen. He'll have to be that for some other team though, as I don't see the Astros bringing him back.

Bud Norris, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 6-3, 55 2/3 IP, 4.53 ERA, 10 GS, 54 strikeouts, 25 walks, 1.50 WHIP, 92 ERA+

FIP: 4.77

Average Game Score: 49

BABiP:.327

GB/FB: 0.87

Pitching Runs Created: 20

Notes: Norris had the most successful debut of any Astros rookie in 2009. He had some rough patches, obviously, but his average game score was still just a shade under average. He was a bit unlucky with his BABiP and gave up too many fly balls, but the strikeouts were there and the walks were minimized. I don't know whether he can get his control working well enough to be a permanent fixture in the rotation, but with his arm, he will have a place on the big league team for a while.

Yorman Bazardo, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 1-3, 32 IP, 7.88 ERA, 6 GS, 17 strikeouts, 22 walks, 1.84 WHIP, 53 ERA+

FIP: 5.00

Average Game Score: 34

BABiP:.323

GB/FB: 1.52

Pitching Runs Created:5

Notes: The Astros won a bidding war to sign Bazardo to a minor league deal in spring training. He joined with Bud Norris and, later, Polin Trinidad to form a potent rotation at Round Rock. Unfortunately, Bazardo may be the proverbial Quadruple-A guy. His strikeout rate has never been very good (5.3 K/9 in minor-league career), though he supplements that by not allowing too many walks. Bazardo does get a fair number of ground balls and his BABiP showed he was slightly unlucky in 2009. His ERA, though, doesn't really support the claim that his failure was all because of Tejada and Matsui. Bazardo should probably be given another shot, but he's a fringe fifth starter at most.

Wilton Lopez, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 0-2, 19 1/3 IP, 8.38 ERA, 2 GS, 9 strikeouts, 8 walks, 2.07 WHIP, 50 ERA+

FIP: 6.25

Average Game Score: 35

BABiP:.381

GB/FB: 2.32

Pitching Runs Created: 2

Notes: Lopez pitched eight games out of the bullpen, but did start two games, so he ended up in this list. A pickup from the Padres, Lopez pitched relatively well for Corpus Christi before getting a late-season callup. Lopez had a good ground ball rate for his limited sample size and his FIP was lower than his ERA (though neither were very good). He profiles as a guy who could hang around Triple-A and help the Astros out in a pinch, but I wouldn't count on him contributing much in 2009.

Brandon Backe, RHP

2009 Season Stats: 0-0, 13 IP, 10.38 ERA, 1 GS, 10 strikeouts, 6 walks, 2.08 WHIP, 40 ERA+

FIP: 7.94

Average Game Score: 41

BABiP:.375

GB/FB: 0.77

Pitching Runs Created: 2

Notes:You'll find no bigger fan of the Galveston native than me. Jeff Kent's home run to beat the Cards in 2004 wouldn't have been possible without Backe throwing a whale of a game. Unfortunately, that's all we got from him. Tantalizing glimpses at potential that never really panned out in the majors. Backe ran into a wall of injuries and ineffectiveness in 2009, refused a demotion to Triple-A and was released.

Busting out in the Divisional Round: Alex Rodriguez and Jeff Bagwell

HighLeveragePerformer — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 11:00:37 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

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Story after story after story have been written in the past week about Alex Rodriguez' playoff redemption. For a player as maligned as Rodriguez, truly positive press can be hard to come by. After a season of high expectations for his team, the Yankee third baseman thriving outside of the spotlight- free agent signees Mark Teixeira, AJ Burnett and CC Sabathia, the resurgent Derek Jeter and their new baseball palace have stolen headlines that used to belong to A-Rod. If the result of this relative lack of exposure is the success we've witnessed over the first few games of the playoffs, then maybe Rodriguez could use some of that $300 million contract to force the NY beat writers to focus on Jerry Hairston, Jr. and Brett Gardner in 2010.

Besides the lessening of external pressure on the slugger, the lineup the Yankees have fielded this season is much stronger than those in playoff years past. Outside of 2004, his playoff performances have been well below his career averages. It's tough to judge a player based off of fewer than 35 AB, but it's the nature of the beast playing in New York, on baseball's biggest stage.

Jeff Bagwell never had to deal with the New York media, or the ire of the baseball public during his illustrious career. After four failed attempts to escape the first round the playoffs, Bagwell and the Astros finally managed to lay their collective demons to rest by beating the Atlanta Braves in the 2004 NLDS. Bags would see extended playoff ABs for the first time in his career, and he responded by posting a stupendous "triple-slash" of .318/.400/.682 in 22 ABs. No longer would he be forced to head into yet another off season coming off of tepid October performances.

Was there anything special about that October as compared to 1997, '98, '99 or 2001 (which in fairness was a solid, albeit short, postseason for Jeff)?

1997:

Position	Player	wOBA
C	Bradley	.305
1B	Bags	.428
2B	Craig	.410
3B	S. Berry/Spiers	.316/.404
SS	Bogar/Ricky	.315/.302
LF	Gonzo	.320
CF	Hidalgo	.373
RF	Abreu	.319

1998:

Position	Player	wOBA
C	Ausmus	.318
1B	Bags	.422
2B	Craig	.406
3B	Berry	.387
SS	Gutierrez	.301
LF	Alou	.416
CF	Everett	.359
RF	Bell	.373

1999:

Position	Player	wOBA
C	Eusebio	.320
1B	Bags	.422
2B	Craig	.368
3B	Cammy	.374
SS	Bogar	.294
LF	Javier	.374
CF	Everett	.416
RF	Bell	.296

Note: This season saw the likes of Daryle Ward (.336), Javier, and Matt Mieske (.333) start playoff games in the outfield. Yikes.

2001:

Position	Player	wOBA
C	Bradley	.270
1B	Bags	.408
2B	Craig	.364
3B	V. Castilla	.339
SS	J. Lugo	.303
LF	Alou	.397
CF	Hidalgo	.346
RF	Lance	.435

2004:

Position	Player	wOBA
C	Bradley	.271
1B	Bags	.364
2B	Kent	.369
3B	Ensberg	.321
SS	Everett	.313
LF	Craig	.349
CF	Beltran	.404
RF	Lance	.427

While the addition of Beltran and Kent in 2004 were huge additions, it wasn't as if the Astros became the '27 Yankees. In fact, this was Bagwell's worst season in his career (to that point), yet he had his best postseason ever. While A Rod's mates are clearly superior in 2009 than in seasons past, the same can't truly be said of Bags' bunch in 2004. Between his and Craig's declines, and the lowest output from 3B since 1997, this was a pretty good, but not superior lineup. What surprised me was that Jeff Kent, a power hitting second baseman throughout his career, posted Biggio-like numbers at second in 2004. Lance Berkman is great....like, "play for five more seasons and punch his ticket to Cooperstown" great.

If anything, I'd chalk up their 2004 NLCS appearance to not having to face Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Kevin Brown, and John Smoltz, and instead facing off against Jaret Wright, John Thomson, Russ Ortiz and Mike Hampton. Wait a second...Ortiz? Hampton? Weren't they on the....this season? Damn.

Cecil Cooper out as Astros' manager: Did he get a raw deal?

HighLeveragePerformer — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:00:33 -0000

More photos » by Rick Scuteri - AP

Houston Astros manager Cecil Cooper looks on against the Arizona Diamondbacks during a National League baseball game on Friday, Aug. 28, 2009, in Phoenix. The Diamonbacks defeated the Astros 14-7. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

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The fallout from the firing of Cecil Cooper is beginning, and JJO has taken to defend Coop for the most part. Opening his article on the firing, Ortiz lets everyone knows where he stands right off the bat:

Cecil Cooper was fired Monday as Astros manager, falling victim to an underachieving, injury-plagued team with a bloated payroll and one of the worst starting rotations in baseball.

Eh. I don't even know if this team underachieved. A team that has one of the worst starting rotations in baseball will find it difficult to compete, especially in light of the lack of depth from the major league level on down. Sure, they were injury plagued and the payroll is bloated, but Coop is not without blame in this mess. Surely he isn't the biggest reason for the Astros' disastrous 2009 season, but he did little to work with what positives this club did have going for it.

Some good news exists on the potential manager front, as Ortiz lays out possible replacements for the manager's role held in the interim by Dave Clark:

Clark, former Phillies, White Sox, Blue Jays and Angels manager Jim Fregosi, former Nationals manager Manny Acta and former Diamondbacks interim manager Al Pedrique, who was promoted to be Clark’s third-base coach from field coordinator, are some potential candidates to replace Cooper. Brad Ausmus, who is currently playing for the Dodgers, Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio, are former Astros who could be candidates if the Astros go for box-office appeal.

To, Ortiz' point about mismanagement and a bloated payroll, Drayton McLane doesn't seem to understand why his team failed so miserably in 2009:

If you'll look, this is the most expensive baseball team the Houston Astros have ever had," McLane said. "It's a huge investment we've had here. It's over $100 million. And we invested it in players that we thought could be championship players.

Currently constructed, there are few Astros that could reasonably be thought of as heavy contributors on a championship level team. Surely Lance Berkman, Wandy Rodriguez, Jose Valverde, Roy Oswalt (when healthy) and Michael Bourn are excellent at their craft and have performed well within their roles. Carlos Lee's contract has eaten up much of the payroll flexibility the Astros might otherwise have.

Speaking of Carlos, he made a pretty on point statement concerning this team. It would have sounded even better if it wasn't so damn ironic:

I’ll tell you, you just got to have a good balance and a competitive team, left fielder Carlos Lee said. If you see the team across the hall right here, the St. Louis Cardinals, they find a way to do it. They’re not a big-market team. They don’t spend that much money. I guess just find a way to do it. That’s what we got to do, just find a way to do it.

Apparently, Carlos is either unaware of his own mammoth contract, or is willing to overlook his contribution to the Astros' top heavy payroll structure.

To sum, Cecil Cooper got fired not because he's the worst MLB manager ever, or because he led a team with high expectations to a 70-80 record. No, he got fired because his veteran team lost confidence in him early on in his tenure, his tactical decisions concerning things like bullpen usage, walking/not walking batters (think Nick Johnson to get to the much less fierce-some Hanley Ramirez), the utilization of the hit and run and stolen base as well as his total lack of communication skills all laid a little bit of dirt on his managerial grave.

More than anything, it was the lack of communication between manager and team that concerned me the most. As a general rule, most managers cannot consistently help their teams win games. Over the course of many seasons, the best managers are those that only cost their team a few wins per season, rather than a handful. Nobody expected a man with no major league managerial experience to take this team to the top.

I'll concede the fact that Coop was put in an extremely unenviable situation, one where it would have taken a ton of moxy, a great deal of luck and a supremely good media presence to wiggle his way out of an escape smelling like roses. Cecil Cooper may be a good man, an honest man, and a baseball man through and through, but there are qualities that professional coaches need to embody in 2009 in order to be successful, and he just doesn't have them (or at least never exhibited them).

Watching his post game press conferences, you almost got the impression that Cecil didn't enjoy his job. He wore the criticisms, the losses, the long nights like a all too heavy Snuggie. Sure, it must have been comforting to some extent to know that he had risen to the highest on field job in the majors, but at the same time, the whole experience seemed to much for him. Where some would have taken that warmth and security and used it to benefit himself and his club, Cooper went the other way. He seemed abrasive at times, and overly affected by criticism at other instances. From pinning misunderstandings on players (think Roy Oswalt) to mishandling pitchers in touchy situations- both injury related (Oswalt again) and role related (just about every pitcher I can think of, especially Felipe Paulino and Russ Ortiz). His owner was misguided in thinking that his $107 million team could compete, and he was equally misguided in thinking that Cecil Cooper could act as the captain to the championship vessel.

Saturday Rockpile: Contreras debuts tonight, Fowler heading to Tulsa, Ortiz released

theoldgrizzlybear — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 14:45:33 -0000

More photos » by Jim Prisching - AP

4 months ago: Chicago White Sox's Jose Contreras reacts to giving up two runs against the Cleveland Indians during the fifth inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Jim Prisching)

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Contreras takes spot as starter in Cook's absence - The Denver Post
Recently-acquired Jose Contreras will make his Rockies debut tonight. Jose is excited to be pitching for a contender and anxious to right the personal ship that ruptured and began to sink in Chicago. As one of the pessimists regarding this deal, I hope that he proves me wrong. Also in the article, Dexter Fowler rehab assignment has been changed - he'll report to Double-A Tulsa and will play three games for the Drillers this weekend. Let's hope all goes well for Dex.

Key players for Cubs, Rockies, Giants, Braves and more contenders - Cliff Corcoran - SI.com
Aaron Cook is listed as one of the major keys for his respective team, as far as the playoff push goes, in all of baseball according to SI.com's Cliff Corcoran. In a perfect scenario, Aaron Cook could come off the DL sometime next week. However, he has not one but two lingering injuries, and needs both to be fully healed. Otherwise, he'll be at risk of overcompensating even more, and/or being generally ineffective. I'd say Jose Contreras probably has a larger part in determining the Rockies' success/failure than Cook at this point.

Inside the Colorado Rockies " Four Pitchers Going to AFL | Major League Baseball in Denver
Seven Rockies prospects will be heading to the Arizona Fall League after the season. Chaz Roe is one to watch closely; Roe struggled in the AFL last year after wearing down at the end of the season.

Rockies Release Russ Ortiz: MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com
The Russ Ortiz reclamation project has officially ended, according to Diamond Leung. Ortiz allowed 12 runs in 14 innings and posted a 2.00 WHIP.

Out of thin air the Rockies have become more than a - 10.15.07 - SI Vault
This article appears in the "SI Vault" section of SI.com's MLB page. Good times.

Thursday Pebble Report: On the menu - a double-digit inning, a grand slam, a pitcher home run, and an abused ace for the road

Poseidon's Fist — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 06:56:31 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

Perhaps you were covering your eyes too. If so, Russ Ortiz stunk it up again.

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It was a strange night on the farm. To wit: in the only organizational loss, the starting pitcher allowed no earned runs and hit a home run. Let's get to it.

AAA Colorado Springs, W 12-9 - (72-65, 1st)

In case you weren't convinced last time, Russ Ortiz showed last night why he should stay far far away from Coors Field. The former 21-game winner threw 92 pitches in 4.0 IP, barely half for strikes, on his way to allowing 6 runs on 7 hits, 7 walks and a wild pitch. Ryan Speier put out the fire with two scoreless innings for his second win.

The Sky Sox mutilated two former Padre starters, Cesar Ramos and Walter Silva, pounding out 12 runs on 18 hits. Six sox had multi-hit games and four had at least three led by Christian Colonel's 4-for-5, 3 RBI night.

The Beavers and SkySox close the series tonight at 6:05MDT at Security Service Field.

AA Tulsa, L 6-7 - (34-31, 2nd, 1.0 GB)

With just five games left this season, the Drillers lost to the Springfield Cardinals, falling back to second place for the first time in over a month. But don't blame Samuel Deduno. The recently awarded Texas League Pitcher of the Year did more than just that by helping Tulsa build a 3-run lead with his first professional home run. Deduno allowed just two hits in six innings, striking out seven while allowing no earned runs.

Unfortunately, he also committed a throwing error that led to four unearned runs, forcing him to leave the game on the hook for the loss. A bases clearing triple by Daniel Mayora gave the Drillers a two-run lead in the eighth, but Matt Reynolds gave it all back by permitting three runs in the bottom half.

Brandon Durden (7-3, 3.65 ERA) will face Trey Hearne (11-3, 3.01 ERA) in game 3 of the four-game set tonight at 6:10MDT.

High-A Modesto, W 6-5 - (33-32, 13.5 GB)

The penultimate WINNAR Joey Williamson (13-3, 3.34) improved his career record to 22-3 by giving up the go-ahead run in relief in the sixth inning. The Nuts took the lead for good in the seventh on a Hector Gomez pop single and Jeffrey Cunningham sac fly. Of particular concern was Christian Friedrich, who started but couldn't make it past the third inning, having allowed four runs on six hits, two walks and two wild pitches. It is the second time in four starts he failed to finish even the fourth inning.

Hector Gomez had a three hit game, extending his hitting streak to seven, of which six were multi-hit games. Matt Repec singled and hit his 11th homer, a grand slam that erased the deficit Friedrich created. What's Friedrich's problem? Sure, it could be fatigue, but he has thrown just 106.2 IP this season, almost 30 IP less than his 2008 total between EKU, Tri-City and Asheville.

The Nuts finish their series with the Lake Elsinore Storm tonight at 8:05 MDT before facing High Desert in the season's last series.

Write-ups for Asheville, Tri-City and Casper under the fold

Low-A Asheville, W 6-2 - (40-24, 1st)

Jimmy Cesario broke a 2-2 tie leading off the bottom of the eighth with his 11th home run, paving the way for a four-run inning also highlighted by a two-run triple from David Christensen. Scott Robinson and Thomas Field each had RBI singles, and Mike Zuanich doubled a man home. Carlos Luna allowed 2 runs on 5 hits in 5.2 IP, then allowed Stephen Dodson and Adam Jorgenson to send the last ten hitters down in order.

Joe Mikulik will send out Juan Nicasio (8-3, 2.41) against the lefty David Duncan (4-3, 4.24) as the Tourists try to whittle their divisional magic number down from three with five games left.

SS A Tri-City, W 12-6 - (45-27, 1st)

Ten isn't really a crooked number, so I'll just say the Dust Devils put up a straight and pretty number in the fifth frame against the Yakima Bears (Diamondbacks). Here's how:

Joseph Sanders doubled. Jose Gonzalez popped out. One out.

Shane Lowe walked. Joey Wong walked. Tim Wheeler walked. RUN ONE.
Joseph Scott hit by pitch. RUN TWO.

Christopher Vasami singled. RUNS THREE AND FOUR.
Kevin Clark reached on force attempt, fielding error.  Kent Matthes reached on force attempt, missed catch error. RUN FIVE.
Joseph Sanders grounded out. RUN SIX. Two out.
Jose Gonzalez singled. RUNS SEVEN AND EIGHT.
Shane Lowe homered. RUNS NINE AND TEN
Joey Wong grounded out. Three outs.

Only Kevin Clark and Ben Paulsen failed to drive in a run, while Sanders and Matthes each had two hits. Wes Musick got the win for allowing three runs in five innings.

The Dust Devils have already clinched a championship series against the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (Giants) Monday-Friday but will have to finish the series with Yakima tonight at 8:15MDT before a weekend series in Boise to close out the regular season.

Rookie Casper, W 9-5 (13-16, 11 GB)

The Ghosts won their first game of the season's final ten, eight of which will come against Wednesday's victim, the Idaho Falls Chukars (Royals). Chandler Laurent hit his second home run and every starter got a hit except Jeffrey Squier, who K'd three times. After managing just one single in his last 17 ABs, Nolan Arenado was given the night off. Kyle Hancock pitched five innings, allowing two unearned runs for his third win.

The Ghosts will take on the Chukars again tonight at 7:15 MDT on the road.

Poll

Which do you wish you witnessed most in person?

Another page of Russ Ortiz' career downspiral, and offensive fireworks

11 votes

Samuel Deduno hitting a home run and allowing no earned runs in a Tulsa loss.

35 votes

Christian Friedrich being humbled, plus a grand slam

5 votes

A strong fundamental win all around for the Tourists

6 votes

A ten run inning

22 votes

A balanced offensive attack in Idaho

1 votes

80 votes | Poll has closed

Saturday Rockpile: CarGo update, Who starts Tuesday?, Marquis enjoying success, more

theoldgrizzlybear — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 15:02:55 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

Can't beat the Giants this weekend while you're shorthanded? Screw it, you've got the rest of the season to make up for it.

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Tracy wants to take advantage of Young's speed - The Denver Post
In addition to Patrick Saunders' profiling Eric Young Jr.'s blazing speed, the article perhaps more interestingly mentions that the Rox are likely considering Brandon Hynick or Russ Ortiz to pitch on Tuesday, along with kicking around the idea of skipping the fifth starter altogether and just running Jorge De La Rosa out there. It will be interesting to see what the club decides to do. Also, Saunders says Carlos Gonzalez's chances of playing this weekend appear slim. Meanwhile, Tracy Ringolsby says it definitely WON'T be Josh Fogg making the start on Tuesday, and that CarGo could be available to play defense tonight and possibly be in the starting lineup tomorrow.

Rockies should worry about Giants, not Dodgers - MLB News - FOX Sports on MSN

In the Cowboy's national piece for FoxSports.com, he talks about how the Rox were setup by the Dodgers, who were struggling heading into the series at Coors Field but promptly took two of three from the previously-surging Rockies. Once they get through this tough part of the schedule, the Rox will only play teams with winning records in 9 of their final 31 games, in addition to playing 19 of those 31 contests in Denver. So, things still set up very well for them. As Jim Tracy says in a quote at the end of the article, the Rockies have "got to keep trudging forward."

Jason Marquis having a remarkable season for Colorado Rockies - ESPN
The national attention continues for the Rockies, despite the small losing streak the team is currently enduring. ESPN.com's Tim Kurkjian's piece details Jason Marquis' success at Coors Field, and throughout the season altogether.

Helton flashes the leather - The Denver Post
What a play by the Toddfather on Randy Winn's hard-hit ball down the first base line last night. Ironically, the piece also mentions the Rockies' blunder on Juan Uribe's 8-foot pop fly.

Armstrong: Tracy, Rockies deserve credit - The Denver Post
A quote from former Rockie Jeremy Affeldt:

"You've got to give them credit. With Francis, Fuentes and Buchholz gone, you would have thought they would be in a pretty big hole. I don't know a lot of other teams that could have survived that."

Michael Young, Brian Roberts best players to not reach postseason - Tom Verducci - SI.com
In this article about the stuff listed in the headline, SI.com's Tom Verducci also discusses top left-handed relievers in the NL West. Franklin Morales and Joe Beimel are no Hong-Chih Kuo and George Sherrill, but they definitely hold their own. Check out the piece for statistical comparisons, etc.

Saturday Pebble Report: Modesto clinches spot in Cal League playoffs

Russ Oates — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 13:57:28 -0000

Colorado Springs, L 1-5
Russ Ortiz: 6 IP, 8 H, 5 R/ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 1 HR. On the bright side, uh, Jason Giambi had two hits.

Tulsa, L 1-4
Samuel Deduno had a fight with the strike zone last night. Of his 105 pitches, 56 went for strikes. He wound up walking six batters and striking out seven. In the end, The Bull (are we still using that nickname?) allowed two runs over six innings. Al Alburquerque saw the other two score, and Shane Lindsay struck out two and walked one in two innings of work.

Modesto, W 6-2
Bruce Billings held Bakersfield to one hit in seven innings. He walked three and struck out seven. However, his GO-FO was 5-9.

The Nuts scored early with a Hector Gomez RBI single in the first, which was immediately followed by a Scott Beerer two-run triple. Beerer would add another RBI with a sac fly in the third. Charlie Blackmon had two hits and stole his 27th base.

The Nuts secured a spot in the playoffs.

Asheville, L 3-4
If I posed this question to any of you, "Who drove in all three runs for Asheville in the first game of the double header?" I'm sure the answer would be either Mike Zuanich or Kiel Roling. Neither is the correct answer. Beau Seabury did it tonight with an RBI double in the second, an RBI sac bunt in the fourth, and a solo homer in the seventh.

Reliever Kurt Yacko made the start and struck out eight in four innings. He allowed no runs and scattered three hits. Stephen Dodson allowed three runs on four hits in the fifth inning. Rex Brothers allowed a run on two hits in two innings pitched.

Asheville, L 6-7
Another one run loss.Adam Jorgenson blew the save in the seventh inning on a combination of a throwing error, a wild pitch, and the single that put the run across the plate.

Mike Zuanich went 3-for-3 with a double, two runs scored, and two RBI; Jimmy Cesario went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and an RBI; and Thomas Field went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI.

Tri-City. W 7-1
Tim Wheeler had only hit in this game but it was doozy. He unleashed a grand slam in the top of the second. Jeremiah Sammy also continued along with his solid season, recording three hits (two doubles), knocking in one, and stealing two bases (9). Kent Matthes had two hits and an RBI.

Wes Musick limited Yakima to a run on four hits over six innings. He struck out three. Erik Stavert allowed three hits over the last two innings and struck out three.

Casper, L 3-6
Chad Jacobsen hit his third homer of the season in the top of the ninth. A bit late, but a run nonetheless. Nolan Arenado and Juan Crousset each had two hits and an RBI. David Kandilas made a rare start (even appearance). recorded a hit, and scored once. He also stole second twice and third once.

Kyle Hancock allowed five runs in three innings of work, four in the second. He struck out five.

Friday Rockpile: Shorthanded Rox enter (another) big series with the Giants

theoldgrizzlybear — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:00:19 -0000

More photos » by Morry Gash - AP

Not having the services of this guy this weekend could be brutal.

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Loss doesn't deck Rockies - The Denver Post
The Rox are still upbeat despite losing 2 out of 3 to the first place Dodgers. They'll need to stay that way to be able to make it through the weekend with a victory or two, as they face three pitchers that they haven't had much success against all year. When your best chance of winning (based on recent history) comes against the reigning Cy Young winner, you know you have a problem. The Rockies have hit Tim Lincecum better this year than they have hit Barry Zito or Matt Cain, and they haven't hit "the hair" all that well, either.. Here's hoping for a breakthrough.

Baseball Tonight Clubhouse: Giants look to get even with Rockies - MLB - ESPN
Tim Kurkjian picks the Giants to win two out of three in the upcoming series, mostly because the Giants' pitching staff is in good order, as discussed earlier, and because they'll be looking for payback.

Krieger: CarGo's a no-go at key time - The Denver Post
Carlos Gonzalez left yesterday's game with a bruised thumb - an injury unrelated to the self-inflicted stab wound he received last weekend. He injured himself diving for a fly ball hit by James Loney in the fourth inning. He is unsure if he'll be able to go this weekend against the Giants. It will obviously be a big loss if he misses any one, or all three, of the games.

Character questions cool interest in Penny - The Denver Post
The Rockies, who are dealing with a similar situation to the one they dealt with in 2007 (with Aaron Cook on the shelf back then as well), look like they aren't showing much interest in Brad Penny, after all (also confirmed by Buster Olney HERE). The Rox have a few internal options, most notably Russ Ortiz. Renck/Saunders mentioned in the article that Ortiz pitched well in his first start with Colorado Springs. The thought of Russ Ortiz taking the vacated spot in the rotation doesn't exactly tickle me pink, but I know there aren't a whole lot of options out there. I know this has been beaten to death, but do you think the Rox should give Chacin/Hynick/somebody else in the minors a look before inserting a guy like Ortiz, or - gasp - giving Fogg another start? It may benefit the club to simply put a guy in there who has yet to be seen at the big league level that can throw strikes, but that's just my opinion.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:31:45 -0000

More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

Manny Parra delivers a meatball to the Nationals Sunday.

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Some things to read while streamlining tech support.

There was a brief period of time this weekend where it looked like I'd be writing about a three game winning streak this morning and wondering if the Brewers could get back to .500 later today. Then, Bad Manny showed up and ruined all of that. 63% of the voters in the poll at that link think Parra will never be a productive major league pitcher. I went the other way, because Parra is still pretty young and could put it together, but it seems clear he's unlikely to develop consistency anytime soon.

The Brewers still have a pretty good chance to earn a series victory in Washington, as Yovani Gallardo takes the mound today. He needs 29 more strikeouts this season to become just the fourth Brewer ever to reach 200. He also needs two more wins to become just the third Brewer since the 2000 season to win 13 games.

If you missed it yesterday, and the site stats would suggest you did, TheJay and I both had notes on Prince Fielder: I took a look at the historical significance of Fielder's walks and TheJay speculated on Fielder's potential performance in the Midwest League. Of course after we spent half the day talking about him he went 0-for-4, just the second time in his last 14 games where he's failed to earn his way on base.

The Brewers open a three game series with the Reds tomorrow, and both teams will enter play with their rotation in a state of upheaval. For the Brewers, Jeff Suppan and Dave Bush will start on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, making their returns from the DL. The Reds, meanwhile, have yet to name a starter for Wednesday, but it won't be Aaron Harang, who underwent an emergency appendectomy over the weekend and could miss the rest of the season. Kip Wells is the likely candidate to replace him.

A quick side note: Is there such a thing as a non-emergency appendectomy? Why would a surgeon remove your appendix if it wasn't an urgent situation?

Roguejim has a look at the latest Elias rankings, with the Brewers still projected to have one Type A free agent and four Type B's. Felipe Lopez's recent play, though, has pushed him up to the edge of Type A status.

In the minors:

The Timber Rattlers drew 5459 fans to yesterday's game and set a new franchise record for single season attendance. With Brett Lawrie bobblehead day still remaining on their schedule, the Rattlers could surpass 250,000 fans this season.
The Rattlers also have (or, in the case of Brett Lawrie, had) two of the 50 youngest players in Low A ball, according to Project Prospect. Efrain Nieves is the other one.
What the Timber Rattlers don't have, though, is one of the Best Team Names in the Minors, at least according to Wezen-ball. The Brevard County Manatees do, though.

With back to back wins on Friday and Saturday, CoolStandings had upgraded the Brewer playoff chances to 1.8%, but they fell back to .7% with the loss yesterday. If that stat wasn't enough for you, Tyler Maas has ~~ten~~ nine signs your team is falling out of playoff contention.

Around baseball:

Astros: Signed Armando Benitez to a minor league deal.
Cardinals: Placed Kyle Lohse on the DL with a strained groin.
Mariners: Released reliever Luis Pena.
Marlins: Placed Brendan Donnelly on the DL with a calf strain.
Mets: Designated infielder Andy Green for assignment.
Phillies: Placed third baseman Greg Dobbs on the DL with a strained calf.
Red Sox: Designated reliever Fernando Cabrera for assignment.
Rockies: Placed Aaron Cook on the DL with shoulder soreness and signed Russ Ortiz and Jason Giambi.

Albert Pujols is batting just .279 since the All Star Game, and (gasp!) his OPS over that time is under 1.000. Clearly, without question, we should abolish the Home Run Derby.

If you're looking to read some in-depth analysis to get your brain working on Monday morning, then reading the Mug was clearly the wrong decision. Instead, you should check out Baseball Analysts' look at batters' decisions to swing at 3-2 pitches, and the possibility they're doing it too often.

On this day in 1993, Kevin Reimer went 6-for-6 as the Brewers beat the A's 7-6 in 13 innings. Reimer also drew an intentional walk to reach base a seventh time.

Happy birthday today to Everett Stull, who appeared in 22 games as a Brewer in 2000 and 2002 and turns 38 today. Happy belated birthdays to Mark DiFelice (33) and Zach Braddock (22), who celebrated their birthdays yesterday.

Oh, and long before he threw the banana, Orlando Hernandez had everyone doing The El Duque.

Drink up.