SB Nation - Mike Timlin

11/19 - My Bad, Tito is Awesome

bs.uf15bosox9bears23 — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:15:08 -0000

Terry Francona Hopes Red Sox Re-Sign Jason Bay - NESN.com

Of course. He's a player's manager, and he wants to support the guy who he thinks will be signed, right? I mean, he's one of those guys that believes heart and sportsmanship wins games...

Coaches Tim Bogar, DeMarlo Hale to Step Up Following Departure of Brad Mills - Terry Francona - NESN.com

Wow, he explains why "team chemistry" is a load of bull. Maybe I was wrong about Tito...

Our Manager is a Closet Stat Geek? - Yawkey Way Academy

Tito needs to talk about stuff like this more often - I was totally wrong when I said Tito was loyal to a fault. My bad. I really hope we get to see the saberfriendly Tito in action a lot more this season, so that we'll at least know what the thought process is if there's a controversial decision.

VORP v RARP - Inside the Book

Since ESPN has decided that VORP can be grasped by our feeble minds, you might as well find out how it compares to Baseball Prospectus's OTHER value stat.

What John Henry Can Learn From Belichick’s 4th and 2 - Fire Brand of the American League

Still, despite the loss, the second-guessing, and the media advocating for everything short of an all-out lynching of BIll Belichick, John Henry should use this occasion as an opportunity to learn something from Robert Kraft.

Since there's a couple Pats fans on here, this link will probably mean more to y'all.

After the jump, a look at the pay scale for the 2009 free agents, "modern" Moneyball, and some recognition for some of the most important Sox of the decade.

How much did the 2009 free agents sign for, per win?

Apparently 1 year deals ain't such a bad idea.

Defense and the Modern Moneyball - Yawkey Way Academy

Boston's Shortstop of the Future is Right Under Our Noses - NESN.com

Yay, the MSM has finally take a liking to Je- wait, what? Iglesias? How is he any sort of secret at this point?

Chone Figgins Could Add Explosive Dimension to Boston's Offensive Strategy - NESN.com

If you're going to make the argument, I'd recommend not using steals as your #1 support - it's been proven that they aren't nearly as valuable as most people think.

Jason Varitek Needs to Knuckle Down, Catch Tim Wakefield - NESN.com

Jason Varitek has come up with clutch hits and incredible defensive plays, he's called a record four no-hitters and he has maintained order in a clubhouse with personalities like Manny Ramirez and Carl Everett. However, if Varitek wants to make the most of his next -- and potentially, his final -- season of Boston baseball, then the captain is going to have learn how to catch the knuckleball.

Okay, not only is this factually wrong (he caught Wake when he first joined the Sox), it's also dumb. The argument of getting Vic rest should be used for Tek catching either Dice or Beckett, the two who "need" him.

All-Aughts Team of the Decade LF: Manny Ramirez - Fire Brand of the American League

What, you were expecting Bay or something? Oh, wait, Hermida's going to be our LF next season, so he'd obviously be a better choice.

All-Aughts Team of the Decade RP1: Mike Timlin - Fire Brand of the American League

Still have the urge to blindfold myself at the mention of his name, but that's not important.

All-Aughts Team of the Decade RP3: Alan Embree - Fire Brand of the American League

Closed out the 2004 ALCS, then proceeded to spiral into relative oblivion.

Comments, links, and general discussion to keep the irritable among us happy with new material would all be greatly appreciated.

Great Trade Deadline Acquisitions

chuckb — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 05:23:06 -0000

More photos » by Tom Gannam - AP

Holliday may be #7 on this list now, but he's moving up pretty rapidly. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam)

Browse more photos »

Today’s thread is going to take us on a stroll down memory lane. We’re going to visit the ghosts of the Cards’ trade deadline acquisitions to discuss the top 10 trade deadline acquisitions of the last 25 years.

The primary stipulation is that the acquisition had to be geared toward helping the Cards make the playoffs or win the pennant. I’m therefore disqualifying the 1997 Mark McGwire acquisition since that team was going nowhere fast when McGwire was added. He played great for the Cards down the stretch but it didn’t really matter – for 1997 anyway. When McGwire was added on July 31, the team was 51-56, in 3rd place, 7.5 games behind. He was acquired for the purpose of trying to sign him to a long-term deal and not w/ an eye toward trying to make the playoffs in ’07. Obviously, the acquisition had to come from outside the organization, so I’m not counting promotions from the minors – though there were some notable promotions (1985 – Todd Worrell, for example). They also need to have been added during the season, as opposed to a trade or free agent signing prior to the season.

So, w/o further ado…I give you the top 10 Cardinal trade deadline acquisitions of the last 25 years:

10. Mike Timlin, 2000 – Timlin came over from the Orioles for Mark Nussbeck and Chris Richard. (BTW, the Cards made another trade that year w/ the Orioles for someone else on this list.) Timlin wasn’t great down the stretch, but he was OK. He pitched 29.2 innings w/ a 3.34 ERA for the Cards. His FIP was 4.48 and he was worth 0.6 WAR in 2000. His WPA was -0.34. He was awful against the Braves in the division series that year and just OK against the Mets in the NLCS.

9. Ron Belliard, 2006 – Belliard, like Timlin, was just OK for the Cards but we desperately needed a 2B in ’06. Acquired from Cleveland for Hector Luna, Belliard was .237/.295/.371 down the stretch and just .240/.283/.260 in the postseason. Like Timlin, he was worth 0.6 WAR w/ the Cards – mostly b/c of his defense. His UZR for the Cards was 6.7 over the last 2 months. He also made a spectacular play in game 1 against the Padres in the division series that helped the Cards hold on and helped propel the team to the NLCS.

8. Jeff Weaver, 2006 – Weaver was acquired from the Angels for Terry Evans. Make no mistake about it, Weaver stunk during the regular season. He was 5-4 w/ a 5.18 ERA and a 5.71 FIP. He was worth -1.3 RAR and -0.1 WAR. He was worse than replacement level but somehow he managed to convince La Russa to allow him to start some postseason games and he was terrific. In the postseason, he was 3-2 w/ a 2.43 ERA and a 4.19 FIP. His WPA in the postseason alone was 0.59. During the regular season his WPA was -0.49.

7. Matt Holliday, 2009 – Holliday’s been terrific in his 19 games as a Cardinal since being acquired from Oakland. He’s hitting .493/.523/.813. His wOBA is a ridiculous .536. His WPA is 1.93 and he’s been worth 14.4 RAR and 1.4 WAR just in his first 19 games. If we revisit this list at the end of the season, I see no reason why Holliday won’t be in the top 2-3.

6. Larry Walker, 2004 – Walker was acquired from the Rockies for Jason Burch, Chris Narveson and Luis Martinez. To tell the truth, I expected Walker to be higher on this list, and maybe he would have if he had been acquired before August 11 of that year. Walker batted .280/.393/.560 w/ a .411 wOBA down the stretch for the 105 win team. Like Holliday, he was worth 14.4 RAR and 1.4 WAR. He was .293/.379/.707 in the postseason w/ a .450 wOBA. It’s not his fault we didn’t win the World Series. It’s too bad that injuries rendered him less effective in 2005.

5. Cesar Cedeno, 1985 – Cedeno was acquired from the Reds for a minor leaguer named Mark Jackson. The outfielder was 34 at the time and primarily played 1B for the Cards the last month or so of the regular season following Jack Clark’s injury. Over the last 28 games, Cedeno hit .434/.463/.750 for the Cards. His WPA was 1.16 and he was worth 14 RAR and 1.5 WAR in less than a month. Cedeno wasn’t nearly as effective in the postseason, batting .148/.258/.222, mostly as a RF.

4. Chuck Finley, 2002 – It’s easy to forget how good Finley was for the Cards after being acquired from the Indians for Luis Garcia and Coco Crisp. He was 7-4 w/ a 3.80 ERA and a 3.17 FIP in 85 innings over the season’s last 2 months. His contribution was worth 18.7 RAR and 2 WAR. In the postseason, he was marvelous against the D-backs and not very good at all against the Giants.

3. Woody Williams, 2001 – Williams was acquired just a couple of days past the non-waiver trade deadline for one of my all-time favorite Cards – Ray Lankford. Neither had played particularly well for their respective teams but Woody was fantastic for the Cards over the season’s last couple of months. He was 7-1 w/ a 2.28 ERA and a 3.76 FIP. His contribution was worth 2.36 WPA and 2.1 WAR. Before being traded to the Cards, Woody was worth 0.4 WAR for the Padres. Unfortunately, the Cards only played 1 postseason series in 2001 but Woody was splendid in his start against the D-backs, beating Randy Johnson by throwing 7 innings of 4 hit and 1 run ball.

2. Will Clark, 2000 – The "other" acquisition from the Orioles in 2000, the Cards received Clark for minor league 3B Jose Leon. Clark stood in for an injured Mark McGwire and posted a .345/.426/.655 line down the stretch. He hit 12 homers in 51 games after hitting 9 in 79 for the Orioles that year and just 10 in 77 games in the previous season. His wOBA was .456 and he was provided a WPA of 2.44. He was worth 24 RAR and 2.3 WAR in less than 2 months w/ the birds on the bat. In the 2000 postseason, he was almost as good, posting slash lines of .345/.441/.621.

And the number 1 trade deadline acquisition by the Cardinals in the last 25 years is…

1. Scott Rolen, 2002 – and it’s not even close. Rolen was acquired from the Phillies for Placido Polanco, Bud Smith, and the aforementioned Mike Timlin. It had been a tough summer w/ the deaths of Jack Buck and Darryl Kile and Rolen struggled early on, w/ just 6 hits and 3 walks in his first 43 PAs as a Cardinal. After that he went all Will Clark on the rest of the NL as he ended up w/ a .278/.354/.561 line as a Cardinal in ’02. What set Rolen apart from Clark, Cedeno, and Walker, however was his defense. Not only was he worth 12 wRAA on offense, but in just over 2 months w/ the team his defense was worth 13.1 runs above average. All told, he finished 33.4 RAR and 3.3 WAR – a full win better than Clark. Only Edmonds, Pujols, Renteria, and Morris had more WAR than Rolen did as a Cardinal in 2002 and Rolen was only w/ the team for 2 months.

I had planned to do a list of the 5 best acquisitions but, as I was looking this stuff up, came across so many contributions that needed to be recognized. I was surprised by how good Finley was, for example. Like I said earlier, it won’t surprise me at all to see Holliday move up this list as this year finishes. He’s less than a win away from 2nd place on the list already. Hopefully, Lugo (.5 WAR) and DeRosa (.2 WAR) can surpass Timlin, Belliard, and Weaver as the Cards head toward their 2nd World Championship in the last 4 years.

Saturday Rockpile: Who would you rather have - Ubaldo Jimenez or Johan Santana?

Poseidon's Fist — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 15:29:24 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

No, Ubaldo, we tip our cap to you.

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That isn't a hometown comparison. No, Ubaldo has really started capturing national attention. The article of the same name is from Fake Teams, the fantasy sports SBNation site. Ubaldo is even getting love from the readers. He is leading in the poll by nearly double, though given the site, votes are probably cast with knowledge of draft slot. But just for fun, let's look at our stud's stats against the former Cy Young winner.

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Ubaldo Jimenez	10-9	24	24	1	0	0	0	158.1	133	63	61	8	63	140	3.47	1.24

	W-L	G	GS	CG	SHO	SV	BS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA	WHIP
2009 - Johan Santana	13-8	23	23	0	0	0	0	153.0	138	60	51	18	45	138	3.00	1.20

Ubaldo has allowed less hits, far less home runs and has a comparable WHIP. He's just walked too many. Sabermetrically, Jimenez has the edge, achieving a tRA of 3.18 vs Johan's 3.59. Our ace also has a lower FIP, 3.31 to 3.71.

Then of course, there's that thing that the Mets are paying $20million for Santana's services and have $117.5million left on his contract through 2013. Jimenez is making just $750k and is owed $9.25million through 2012, with options through 2014. Jimenez wins from Fangraphs value as well, giving the Rockies $19.7million in value (4th in NL) while Santana is at $12.6million.

I'll admit readily that we're not comparing apples to apples here. Johan is a 30-year old 9-year veteran while Ubaldo is 25 and barely has two years of continual play on the MLB roster. Still, who would have thought three years ago that the Rockies would have a pitcher in the same conversation as the Mets lefty?

Rockies News and Links

Speaking of dominant starters, Josh Johnson was good last night. The kid set a career high in strikeouts and lost his no-hitter in the seventh inning. It should be no surprise though. The kid is 31-13 in his career, including a ridiculous 19-3 since coming off Tommy John surgery. His career ERA is 3.28, he's been the 5th most valuable starter in the NL, has as many strikeouts as Ubaldo Jimenez, and has the second fastest fastball, ranked 8th in NL in value. So it was a good pitcher that beat us last night. It sure would be nice if we could beat a good pitcher before we have to in a playoff series.

Mike Timlin was released yesterday. The Rockies told him there was no spot in the MLB bullpen, so he walked away to be with his family in Castle Rock. Ryan Speier was activated from the DL to take his place and promptly blew a save last night.

Baseball America came out with their best tools issue, ranking players all the way to Class A. Most notable is Todd Helton's ranking as MLB's 3rd best hitter, behind Pujols and Hanley Ramirez. Huston Street earned honors as the third best reliever (not a bad trade) and Troy Tulowitzki checks in as being the 2nd best fielder with the 2nd best arm. Also appearing are Brad Hawpe, Eric Young Jr, Jhoulys Chacin, Esmil Rogers, Mike McKenry, Craig Baker, Jordan Pacheco, and Hector Gomez.

Rox riding a hot Fowler in August heat | ColoradoRockies.com: News
When asked why he has started hitting well again, the Rox CF said "I have no clue." Jim Tracy knows though: six of the eight starts in his hitting streak have come against LHP, meaning he's making hay mostly from the right side still.

Eaton gets early call to pitch - The Denver Post
After seeing him allow two runs in three innings last night, Bob Apodaca called Adam Eaton "impressive."

Troy Tulowitzki has started every game Jim Tracy has managed. Trainers are suggesting Tulo is fatigued (this is a tired Tulo?) and needs a day off. Tracy suggests next Friday against the Giants. Why? Rest him in Washington...Tulo also "impressed" while visiting the Dolphins' training camp before the game, and Troy Renck echoed yesterday's murmurs on Purple Row by saying the Rockies seem to have a ceiling offer of $2million for Tyler Matzek and that it appears no deal is imminent.

If you've read this far, you're probably very bored or very interested. There's more links under the fold - Buster Olney sounding off on beanballs, and several sabermetric topics.

Beanballs

Buster Olney looks into hit batters in a couple ESPN Insider Articles. In one, he notes the teams that hit the most batters win more. Only ten teams have hit fewer batters than the Rockies, so Colorado bucks the trend a bit. The other article:

The players have a code, and it's about time the league wises up to it, writes Buster Olney. Olney claims that MLB "whiffed" on the Rick Porcello-Kevin Youkilis fued and that the league needs to wisen up to the "Code of Proper Retaliation."

Sabermetric Thoughts

BtB's latest Poor Man's Predicted Standings. The Rockies have made up two games on the Giants and three on the Dodgers since the last installment.

tRA has been added to Fangraphs and is currently listed under the batted ball section of a pitcher profile. The tRA numbers will be slightly different than those at StatCorner because they use a different source for batted ball data as well as implementing park factors.

Graham MacAree explains: What is tRA? For a more detailed explanation, check out RockiesMagicNumber's Counting Rocks article on tRA.

Delving more into the world of pitcher sabermetrics, Colin Wyers at The Hardball Times attacks the practice of subtracting ERA and FIP, saying it distorts the difference between the good and bad pitchers, especially at extremes. Fangraphs has a ranking of ERA-FIP numbers, of which Jason Hammel ranks 3rd in MLB.

Ever wonder how to project the statistics of a player? Wyers uses Joe Mauer as an example to explain.

That's it for today...have a wonderful Saturday, Rowbots.

Thursday Pebble Report: Hollingsworth impressive, Dust Devils toss 12 scoreless innings in only organizational loss

Poseidon's Fist — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:05:32 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

After his first MLB start, Jhoulys Chacin walked off the Coors mound straight to AAA for the first time in his career.

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AAA Colorado Springs, W 7-5 - (62-56, 1st)

The Sky Sox held on late to snap their four game losing streak, winning 7-5 over the Memphis Redbirds (Cardinals). Damian Moss threw five scoreless innings in the start, and Mike Timlin tossed a scoreless inning, allowing a hit and a walk but striking out two. Scott Munter and Matt Belisle nearly blew the 7-0 lead by allowing 5 runs on 5 hits in the last two innings.

Sal Fasano drove in two with two doubles, scoring twice. Jonathan Herrera, Mike McCoy and Matt Miller each had two hits. Every starter reached base except Eric Young Jr., who was 0-for-4, ending an 8-game hitting streak.

The Sky Sox have an off day today as the travel to New Orleans to play the Zephyrs (Marlins) Friday night. Brandon Hynick will face Luis Ayala. Jhoulys Chacin was optioned to AAA yesterday, so the Rockies top prospect will have a Sky Sox uni for the first time in his career.

AA Tulsa, W 10-9 - (25-20, 2 GB)

The Drillers looked to be easing to victory after building a 10-3 lead against the Frisco RoughRiders (Rangers), but closer Andrew Johnston went Huston Street on Tulsa, allowing five runs on four hits and a walk in a non-save situation in the ninth. Adam Bright came in to get the last out for his first save. Matt Reynolds pitched a scoreless inning, and Edgmer Escalona served up a solo home run in his inning of work. Samuel Deduno (11-2, 2.72) got the start and win, though he wasn't particularly effective, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits and 4 walks in 5 innings, needing 89 pitches. He has allowed 3 runs in his past two outings after tossing 12 straight with less than three.

Ryan Harvey and Jeff Kindel were both a triple shy of the cycle, scoring five runs and driving in six between them. Cole Garner laced a couple doubles as well.

The two teams face off again tonight at 6:05MDT.

High-A Modesto, W 6-1 - (24-23, 8.5 GB)

Ethan Hollingsworth (1-2, 4.95) turned in a dominating effort for the Nuts in against the Inland Empire 66ers (Dodgers), getting his first win since being promoted from Asheville. The 22-year-old struck out 7 against no walks in 7 scoreless innings, allowing just one run on three hits, one a solo homer.

Modesto exploded for a 4-run first inning with the help of an error and three walks and just two hits. One was a leadoff double by Charlie Blackmon and the other was a 2-out 2-run single from Scott Beerer, who had three hits on the day to break a double-digit hitless AB slide.

The Nuts get an offday today before facing the Visalia Rawhide (Diamondbacks) Friday at 8:05 MDT.

Low-A Asheville, Off Day - (28-15, 1st)

The Tourists had an off day, allowing them to travel from Lexington backhome to Asheville to start a weekend series against the Kannapolis Intimidators (White Sox).

SS A Tri-City, L 0-1 - (32-22, 1st)

Low level minor league games can get squirrely. Four straight Dust Devil games have been shutouts - unfortunately, Tri City has been the victims in three of them. A day after shutting out the last-place Yakima Bears, the Diamondbacks affiliate returned the favor last night. Wes Musick, Sheng-An Kuo, Aaron Weatherford and Eric Federico combined for 12 scoreless innings before the Bears rallied for the walk-off win against Kyle Walker, only the second run he's allowed in his last 23.1 IP. The DDevils could only manage seven singles on offense.

Tri-City closes their series against the Bears tonight at 8:05MDT. Josh Hungerman (0-0, 2.86) gets the start for the Dust Devils.

Rookie Casper, W 8-7 - (2-1, 1st)

Th Ghosts snapped a five game losing streak in a hard fought win over the Great Falls Voyagers (White Sox).

Nolan Arenado (2) hit a HR for the second straight Wednesday, Chandler Laurent (two hits) and Eliezer Mesa (three) each doubled and catcher Brandon Whitby saw his average drop to .390 with a 1-for-4 day, including a triple.

Alejandro Barraza was credited with the win by throwing two perfect innings, striking out four in relief of Juan Gonzalez. Steve Junker nearly blew the lead but held the Voyagers to two runs despite allowing four hits and an error in the eighth.

The Ghosts close the series tonight at 7:05MDT.

Sunday Pebble Report: Sky Sox earn a walkoff win, Modesto's pen blows up (so does Tri-City's offense), more

theoldgrizzlybear — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 17:48:15 -0000

Colorado Springs: W 6-5

Matt Murton hit a walkoff two-run double in the bottom of the 11th to cap off a 3-for-6 evening, and the Sky Sox also got multi-hit games from Jon Herrera, Matt Miller, Christian Colonel, and Edwin Bellorin. Brandon Hynick's sixth inning single raised his batting average to .357. On the mound, Hynick turned in a quality start, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits in 6 innings. He was troubled by walks though, as issued four of them. Mike Timlin allowed a run in an inning of work and struck out two, and Randy Flores and Matt Herges held serve until Joel Peralta came in and allowed a tiebreaking homer to Carlos Corporan in the top half of the 11th.

Tulsa: W 1-0

Ryan Harvey hit an RBI double in the top of the seventh inning, and although it was one of just four hits for the Drillers, it was enough to win the ball game because of the pitching performance of Brandon Durden. Durden pitched 7.1 innings of six-hit shutout ball, striking out two and putting up a 14:6 groundout-to-flyout ratio. Edgmer Escalona and Andrew Johnston (who picked up his 28th save) slammed the door on Springfield.

Modesto: L 11-4

Kenneth Durst pitched quite well in 6.1 innings, striking out 6 batters while allowing three runs, but the bullpen had a serious meltdown - something we fortunately don't see a whole lot throughout the organization - and the offense wasn't able to make up for it. Sean Jarrett, Austin Chambliss, and Randall Taylor allowed a combined 8 runs, and the Nuts' hitters were held without an extra base hit. Jay Cox had a couple of singles, and Charlie Blackmon walked twice.

Asheville: W 6-2

Kiel Roling (2 hits, HR) and Mike Zuanich (3 hits, HR) carried the load offensively for the Tourists, and Dan Houston turned in a shaky start (5 innings, 5 walks) before turning it over to the bullpen combination of Kurt Yacko (3 K's in 1.2 IP) and Michael Marbry, who were able to preserve the victory.

Tri-City: W 9-2

The Dust Devils punched out 18 hits in the game, and despite allowing too many walks, they were able to minimize the damage on the pitching side, as Spokane only had 5 hits. Six different Tri-City hitters had multi-hit games, led by Tim Wheeler (3-for-5), Jeremiah Sammy (4 hits, 2 RBI), and Dallas Tarleton (3-for-5).

Casper: L 6-2

The Ghosts experienced quite a bit of failure with runners in scoring position (2-for-14), as they had 11 hits - 6 for extra bases - but only came away with 2 runs. Nolan Arenado (2-for-5), Brandon Whitby (2-for-4), and Angelys Nina (3-for-3) were the stars offensively for Casper. Kyle Hancock took a hard luck loss, as he gave up just two hits in four innings and didn't walk anybody, but was a victim of bad defense, as he allowed three unearned runs. He also struck out seven batters. Trevor Gibson pitched a scoreless eighth, and struck out two.

Friday Rockpile: Aaron Cook's toe, Cubs coming to Coors, Stewart staying optimistic, more.

theoldgrizzlybear — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:32:46 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

Cookie hurt himself again yesterday, but should be okay for his next start.

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In yesterday's game, Aaron Cook aggravated a toe injury that has bothered him a bit as of late, but he says that he will make his next start, which is scheduled for Tuesday against the Pirates. Cook says it wasn't necessarily the toe that brought him out of the game as much as it was the fear of hurting his arm by trying to compensate for not being able to push off as well as he is accustomed to. The same article mentions the promotion of Mike Timlin to Triple-A Colorado Springs, as he'll provide depth there and will be considered for the big league club in the event of an injury or meltdown.

The Denver Post also has a preview article for the Rockies' upcoming series vs. the Cubs. I'm sure there will be 20,000+ annoying Cubs "fans" there making things miserable for everyone else. For that reason (and because of other obvious ones), I really hope the Rockies treat the Cubs like they treated the Yankees in '07.

Thomas Harding's latest MLB.com piece discusses Ian Stewart's optimism after a good weekend in Cincinnati. Stew says he's feeling more comfortable at the plate, and wants to try to get his average up, but he'll have a hard time doing so if he isn't able to capitalize on mistakes, such as one that Brad Lidge left over the plate on an 0-1 count in yesterdays game. Jim Tracy on Ian working toward becoming a complete hitter (which in this case, involves not hitting mistake pitches):

You've got to be ready to fire, and you have to square it up and get it in play.

Ian has shown the ability to do this, but needs to do it more often, instead of missing/fouling the ball off.

The Rockies are 8th in Fox Sports' latest power rankings. I know how most people feel about such rankings, so I wasn't even going to post this but I thought this comment by the author was amusing:

Dodgers improved a tad. Giants improved a bit. Rockies stayed about the same. Their death knell?

I guess going out and picking up two relievers who have been very good over the past couple of years to shore up the team's most glaring issue at the deadline doesn't classify as an improvement. Cool...

Finally, FanGraphs' Marc Hulet has been posting a multi-part series ranking the prospects that were dealt before the trade deadline. Connor Graham, who the Rockies sent to Cleveland in exchange for Rafael Betancourt, is 16th on the list. Not bad, considering there weren't really any high-impact prospects dealt this year anyway (aside from maybe Brett Wallace, that is).

Saturday Pebble Report: Modesto barely avoids being on the wrong end of a perfect game

Russ Oates — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 13:17:16 -0000

Colorado Springs, W 6-4
Matt Herges threw a clean 1 2/3 innings, striking out one and throwing 32 of his 45 pitches for strikes. Eric Young Jr. went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer in the sixth, his sixth of the season. Matt Murton and Dan Ortmeier each had two hits and an RBI.

Tulsa, L 4-12
Something tells me that if you allow nine runs in the top of the first inning, it's going to be hard to come back from that. And Keith Weiser allowed nine runs in the first inning last night. Four runs scored on two two-run homers, and the others on a combination of singles, doubles, and force outs. Weiser allowed another run in the second before leaving the game. Adam Bright and Tommy Baumgardner each pitched three innings with much better success than Weiser had last night, holding Arkansas to only one run. Edgmer Escalona allowed an unearned run in the ninth.

Fittingly enough, Ryan Harvey hit two two-run homers to score all of the Drillers' runs.

Modesto, L 1-7
So, Daniel Haigwood had a chance for a perfect game until Hector Gomez hit a home run in the seventh, his sixth of the season. But that was the only hit for the Nuts, as Haigwood left after the seventh with that blemish and Derrick Gordon held the Nuts in check for the last two innings.

Joey Williamson allowed four runs in 5 1/3 innings, walking five and striking out four.

Asheville, W 6-2
Juan Nicasio turned in seven quality innings last night, allowing only two runs on four hits and striking out five. Shane Lindsay walked two and struck out three in an inning of work.

Jimmy Cesario went 3-for-5 with two doubles and three RBI, and Kiel Roling went 2-for-5 with a double, a homer (11), and three RBI. Scott Robinson collected two hits and his 36th stolen base.

Tri-City, L 1-16
This was a disaster after the third inning, and even Rex Brothers took part in it. Umm, Joey Wong walked three times and scored the only run! Tri-City Herald story.

Casper, W 9-5
Mike Timlin started the game and threw a perfect inning. Ricardo Ferrer allowed two runs (one earned) over the nex five innings and struck out five. He also made successful pickoffs at first base.

Eliezer Mesa went 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI, and Jeffrey Squier went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI. Chandler Laurent and Brandon Whitby each added two RBI on one hit.

Thursday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:36:05 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Roberson - AP

Manny Parra, seen here in the center of a conversation, has recently been the center of another conversation involving trades and Roy Halladay.

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Some things to read while screwing up Korean Heritage Night.

The Brewers are off today as they prepare for a very important homestand against the Braves and Nationals. Despite falling to just one game above .500, the Brewers managed to gain a game on the Cardinals while taking just one of three in Pittsburgh. Meanwhile the Astros have snuck up within a game of first place. Big League Stew wonders if a mediocrity-filled divisional race is good for baseball. It's possible the Brewers could vault into first place with a 5-2 homestand.

The front office continues to search for starting pitching help, but Doug Melvin says the team is more likely to use an internal option when they need a fifth starter again on Tuesday. Right Field Bleachers doesn't want the Brewers to trade for Roy Halladay if it means trading away Manny Parra. Meanwhile, Tim Dillard pitched an eight inning, one hit shutout last night in AAA to record his tenth win, facing the minimum 24 batters and walking none. At some point, he has to be considered as an option.

At SI.com, Joe Posnanski ranked the top 100 players in baseball. Prince Fielder checked in at #11 and Ryan Braun was at #13, which I can live with. Posnanski missed the boat with Yovani Gallardo, though, ranking him #97.

Jason Kendall has 280 ABs this season and has yet to crack a single home run. The JS has a table showing dozens of deadball era hitters and others who went longer without going deep. I was more interested in Brewer history, and here's what I found: Kendall's 280 homerless AB's are already the ninth most in a season in franchise history. Furthermore, he's on pace to record 477 at bats this season, and if he keeps up his current HR pace he'll reach second place. Here are the top nine:

Player	Season	AB
Jim Gantner	1988	539
Tim Johnson	1973	465
Willie Randolph	1991	431
Jim Gantner	1989	409
Charlie Moore	1985	349
Pat Listach	1995	334
Jim Gantner	1990	323
Ellie Rodriguez	1973	290
Jason Kendall	2009	280

The Brewers raided the independent leagues yesterday, signing pitcher Brandon Kintzler of the St. Paul Saints. He's expected to be assigned to Huntsville.

I don't have any other minor league notes today, but perhaps you're interested in coming out to discuss the minor leagues in person? We're working on a BCB meetup at Time Warner Cable Field on August 16. Follow the link and post a comment if you're interested in being a part of it.

On Power Rankings:

Beyond the Box Score dropped the Brewers from 17th to 19th.
MLB FanHouse dropped the Brewers from 16th to 19th.
Summer Loving dropped the Brewers from #4 to #18.

It's a slow day on the transaction wire for teams not based in Boston:

Red Sox: Acquired Adam LaRoche from the Pirates for two minor leaguers and Chris Duncan from the Cardinals for Julio Lugo.
Rockies: Reliever Manny Corpas will undergo surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow and be out until September at the earliest.

The Rockies are scraping the bottom of the barrel looking for bullpen help: Mike Timlin threw a bullpen session at Coors Field Wednesday, and will throw another one Friday in an effort to get a minor league contract. Timlin is 43 and posted a 5.66 ERA for the Red Sox last season.

Mike Timlin isn't the only one getting older, though: Jorge Says No! has a look at some of baseball's aging managers, including this gem:

The Central Division leader is Detroit, managed by Jimmy Leyland, who is 64. That means that by the end of the year, four of the six division-leading managers will be eligible for full Social Security benefits."

The Brewers are back in the Dominican Summer League this season after an extended hiatus, giving the league 33 teams (several teams have multiple entries). Over at The Hardball Times, Jeff has a look at some of the trends in the DSL. Very few players actually leave the Dominican Republic and become impact players in the states, but there are some very big names among those who have.

Happy birthday today to Chuck Crim, who led the AL in relief appearances in 1988 and 1989 and turns 48 today.

Oh, and if you thought losing to the Pirates was bad, on this day in 1992 the Brewers gave up a triple to 44-year-old catcher Carlton Fisk.

Drink up.

Wednesday Rockpile: That Thing That Rolaids Spells...

Jabberwocky — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:44:37 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

Oy Vey Franklin! Where's the relief?

Browse more photos »

Last night, the Rockies gave away an opportunity to go up 1.5 games in the Wild Card standings, as the bullpen had a large hand in squandering a three run lead to the Diamondbacks--ultimately losing 6-5.

This debacle came after calling up Ryan Speier to replace Joel Peralta yesterday, and it may be that the Rockies are not done shuffling their pen. How the Rockies should go about this has been a hot topic for the Purple Row community, with several FanPosts devoted to the issue.

Dave Krieger believes that games like last night increase the likelihood of the Rockies acquiring a set-up man to shore up the bullpen. He mentions George Sherrill (as has PR) and Rafael Betancourt as possibilities. Here's Krieger's conclusion:

Not wanting to mortgage the future is one thing. Not wanting to trade any prospects at all, even for the one piece that might get you into the postseason, is something else.

If the Rocks are serious about the wild-card race, they will go get a setup man in the next nine days. In games like Tuesday night's, baseball is showing them their weak link as clearly as it can.

I tend to disagree with Krieger and those saying that we need to add a bullpen arm through trade. Instead, I'm in the camp of Redhawk and others who believe that there is a homegrown solution to this problem. And contrary to this news bulletin, it's not Mike Timlin (though in the notes Jim Tracy confirms that Seth Smith is his starting left-fielder).

In my opinion, the Rockies' bullpen booster shot should be Esmil Rogers or Samuel Deduno--both starting pitching prospects who are putting up great numbers (Rogers in AA and AAA and Deduno in AA), have power arms, and are already located on the Rockies' 40 man roster. Are they the key to healing the Rockies' bullpen woes? Maybe not, but they're a better alternative to trading two top prospects for a middling reliever performing over his head (like Sherrill) or some of the pitchers the Rockies have been trotting out there recently (I'm looking at you, Joel Peralta, Randy Flores, and Matt Belisle--as well as current pitchers Ryan Speier, Matt Daley, and Josh Fogg).

Converting these guys from starters to relievers is much easier than the reverse, and has been a relative success in the case of Franklin Morales this year. Why have these power arms if you're not going to use them?

Other News

Putting on my optimist hat:

We do still lead the NL Wild Card standings by 0.5 games--so we've got that going for us, which is nice. In addition, BP gives us a 60% chance at the playoffs while CBS ranks us 7th in their power rankings.

Finally, the Rockies' top Latin America signing, 16 year old shortstop (and $550,000 man) Rosel Herrera worked out at Coors Field and flashed his tools.

2009 World Baseball Classic: Good Idea or Looming Disaster?

0157H7 — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:36:16 -0000

The second World Baseball Classic begins in three days, and our beloved Red Sox are well-represented in the tournament. 15 players from the organization are attending, tied for most in MLB (with the Mets). Notable attendees include Pedroia, Youkilis, Bay, Ortiz, and Matsuzaka, (see full list here). In other words, one of our best pitchers and a good deal of the lineup is participating in the WBC.

As pointed out by Adam Kilgore in the Boston Globe, the remaining Spring Training games will at most feature five regular starters: Jed Lowrie, J.D. Drew, Jacoby Ellsbury, Julio Lugo and Jason Varitek.* MLB has a rule that spring games should start with at least four major leaguers in the lineup, and the Sox are unlikely to be able to satisfy that requirement.

I have mixed feelings about the WBC. Mostly, I think it's a great idea. For baseball to grow, it needs to be promoted around the world. With more countries participating, the level of play will rise and the sport will be better for it. Also, the games themselves should prove entertaining to watch.

On the other hand, playing games that matter early in Spring Training always incurs the risk of injury. Back in the inaugural WBC, Mike Timlin pitched three games before coming down with a tired arm, and he had a poor regular season that year (4.36 ERA, 4.40 FIP). This article discusses other examples, such as Bartolo Colon, who pitched the second-most innings of participants (14) and proceeded to miss most of 2006 to injury. Thankfully none of our real injury risk pitchers (Smoltz, Penny, Saito) are participating, but the possibility of anything happening to Daisuke is troubling.

Another issue is the effect on Spring Training. I doubt MLB will sanction the Sox for not fielding the required four major leaguers in every game. Seeing more of Lars Anderson can't hurt, but the ST games are going to be less fun to watch without familiar faces like Youk, Pedroia and Papi.

So what do you think about the WBC? Are you excited? Worried? Angry? Leave your thoughts in the comments, and don't miss the poll.

*I'm guessing the WBC has a quota on the number of players whose names begin with "J."

Poll

What's your reaction to the WBC?

It must be short for Worst Balderdash [ever] Conceived.

37 votes

I think it's an interesting premise, but I don't like how it affects the team.

139 votes

I'm excited about the tournament and think it's a great idea.

133 votes

With my powers of awareness and tinfoil hat, your poll's insidious mindrays have no effect on me!!!

12 votes

321 votes | Poll has closed