SB Nation - Armando Benitez

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.

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.

Triple Play Applesauce - Wagner to BoSox possible, Brooklyn no-hitter, Minaya back to Mets for 2010

Joe Budd — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:17:58 -0000

At this point, I'm starting to take a certain pride in how awful this season has been. I can say to future generations of Met fans, "you think you've got it bad now, I remember when the Mets ended a game by... hitting into an unassisted triple play... dropping a popup..." It's like showing off my scars. They build character.

Meet the Mets

The Boston Red Sox have claimed Billy Wagner off waivers and the Mets appear to be in the process of working out a deal. Problem is, there are some roadblocks. One is Wagner himself, who would want to close immediately. Secondly, the Boston bullpen sounds less than thrilled about the addition.

Fred Wilpon assures Met fans that chaos will continue for at least another year.

The Mets got a no-hitter from Brandon Moore at Brooklyn.

Ted Berg asks why we're all jumping to conclusions that Gary Sheffield's latest spat was hit fault?

Sunday's game opened with an inside the park home run and ended with an unassisted triple play. What can we possibly expect this afternoon? My guess is a no-hitter by Cliff Lee with a cycle by Shane Victorino.

A plea for peace from Phillies Nation.

The Mets have interest in Japanese teenage pitcher Yusei Kikuchi.

Reese Havens hit his 12th home run of the year while scoring four runs in St. Lucie's 9-4 win over Sarasota.

Josh Thole, Nick Evans, and Eddie Kunz will be a part of any September call-ups for the Mets.

FanGraphs takes a look at Billy Wagner's return.

Around the NL East

The Nationals, led by Craig Stammen, pounded the Brewers 8-3, snapping their 5-game losing streak.

Atlanta pulled ahead of Florida in the division with the help of Brian McCann's 5 RBI.

The Braves got more good news with Tim Hudson's encouraging rehab performance.

Marlin first baseman Nick Johnson is likely out for the Met series as he continues to struggle with running. No decision yet on the DL.

In random statistics, the Marlins are quickly approaching their 1,000th batter hit by pitch.

Philadelphia put Greg Dobbs on the disabled list and called up slappy Miguel Cairo.

Around MLB

Fire Jim Bowden argues that Adam Dunn is as bad defensively as his fielding metrics say.

Armando Benitez is going to Houston, or at least Houston's triple-A farm team.

John Smoltz struck out 9 over 5 innings in his Cardinal debut. Seven of those nine strikeouts were consecutive.

The Tribune Company is finally getting rid of the Cubs. For $845 million to the Ricketts family.

Ozzie Guillen is unsure whether Jake Peavy is returning this year. Chicago may have rolled snake eyes on that deal.

Reds pitcher Aaron Harang is out for the remainder of the season after an emergency appendectomy.

The Rockies have signed Jason Giambi.

San Diego just can't get enough grission. They have re-signed David Eckstein for an additional year.

1969 wasn't just the Miracle Mets, it was Ball Four and the Seattle Pilots' only year. Now there's a film about the Pilots.

Astros sign Armando Benitez

Eli Greenspan — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:26:31 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

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MLB.com has confirmed that the Astros have signed closer Armando Benitez to a minor league deal. Benitez, who last pitched in majors in June of 2008, was pitching for the Newark Bears of the Atlantic League before being courted by the Astros.

In 34 games with the Newark Bears, Benitez was 1-0 with a 2.86 ERA and 16 saves. He had 43 strike outs to jut 10 walks, and was holding hitters to a .171 batting average.

Astros GM Ed Wade says he plans to have Benitez finish the season at Triple-A Round Rock, which will play its final game on September 7th. If Benitez can continue his success, it is possible the Astros will call him up for the final month of the season.