SB Nation - Rocky Cherry

San Diego Padres update

Eli Greenspan — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:45:40 -0000

More photos » by Jim Prisching - AP

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The Padres have traded reliever Scott Patterson to the Oakland A's for cash considerations. Patterson, 30, is 3-3 with a 3.69 ERA and 63 strike outs. Patterson will likely join the team when rosters expand in September.
The Padres brought in journeyman Rocky Cherry on a minor league deal. In 38 games for the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox, Cherry was 3-1 with a 2.57 ERA and 44 strike outs. He walked 36 batters and had a 1.57 WHIP.
The Padres elected to receive cash in return for Chad Gaudin, who they traded to the Yankees on August 7th. The Padres had until September 1st to take cash or a PTBNL. They will receive 100,000 dollars.
The Padres signed 16-year old Dominican outfielder Fabel Filpo to a 450,000 dollar bonus. The switch-hitting outfielder showed advanced skills at the plate.
The Padres are definitely investing in their future, committing 10 million dollars to amateurs between the draft and Latin American signings this year.

Friday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:00:28 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

New Mariner Bill Hall congratulates teammate Kenji Johjima on hitting a home run last night.

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Some things to read while writing a scouting report.

All told, it was a pretty boring off day, so the biggest news might be Bill Hall's comments upon joining the Mariners this week. Hall said he tried too hard to live up to his big contract. He gave this quote to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, and it's halfway between laughable and sad:

"I can still hit righthanders," Hall said with a laugh. "I can hit anybody. It's one of those things where, if you say something so long, you might even start believing it yourself."

Since the start of the 2007 season, Hall has faced a righty 683 times and hit .206/.271/.353. If he doesn't recognize a problem there, how is he ever going to figure it out?

Meanwhile, the picture in this Miller Park Drunk post raises what might be the greatest unanswered question regarding Hall: How does a guy who constantly has a giant wad of chew in his mouth keep his teeth that white?

Now that we know Bill Hall will never reach the 200 mark as a Brewer, this streak may live on for a long time: Chris Jaffe of The Hardball Times notes that it's been 18 years since a Brewer had 200 hits, with Paul Molitor being the last to get there in 1991. Since then, 28 other teams have had at least one hitter do it. Ryan Braun enters play today with 145, so he'd need to play every day the rest of the way and hit roughly .327 to get the 55 hits he needs to get there. Braun, Fielder (134) and Mike Cameron (102) are the only Brewers with 100 hits on the season.

Of course, if Felipe Lopez (hitting .333/.398/.459 as a Brewer) was able to stretch his performance out over a full season, he'd easily reach 200. Jorge Says No! has a profile of Lopez, who can become a free agent after the season, and thinks he'll get a four year deal worth around $30 million from someone.

It's possible Prince Fielder could get there someday too. He credits improved patience at the plate for the impressive season he's putting together.

How ugly have things gotten for the Brewers? Casa de Machado threw in the towel on the 2009 season yesterday...on an off day.

And, as it turns out, getting Jeff Suppan back might not make things any better. Suppan was lit up again in AAA last night, allowing five earned runs on eight hits in just 3.2 innings. If he can make it through five innings in his big league return without pitching the Brewers out of the game, I'll be shocked.

The Brewers' second half collapse has turned up the heat on Doug Melvin, with a small but vocal percentage of fans calling for his head. If things stay this ugly, he might decide to look for a new opportunity, and Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun wants him to be the next President of the Blue Jays.

Adam McCalvy spent the day off on the farm, and has a great story on Mike Jones and Mark Rogers, as the two former highly touted prospects continue their rebound from injuries that have devastated their early careers.

On power rankings and playoff odds:

Yahoo moved the Brewers down a spot to 20th in their rankings.
Even though they were off yesterday, MLB Playoff Odds downgraded the Brewers to a .4% shot at making the playoffs.

Around baseball:

Mets: Designated Livan Hernandez for assignment.
Orioles: Claimed pitcher Chris Lambert off waivers from the Tigers.
Padres: Traded reliever Scott Patterson to the A's for cash, and signed reliever Rocky Cherry to a minor league deal.
Red Sox: Released outfielder Chris Duncan.

With the Reds out of the playoff hunt for 2009, the youth movement has come on in full force: At one point last night, the eight Reds position players on the field combined to make $3.235 million, just $35,000 above the minimum possible. They beat the Giants 2-1.

One by one, every team in baseball is getting an opportunity to learn why the others have been so happy to be rid of Gary Sheffield. Sheffield requested a contract extension from the Mets yesterday, and when they declined to offer one he asked to be taken out of the lineup for last night's game. Adam Rubin thinks the Mets should bench Sheffield until September 1, then release him when it's too late for him to make a postseason roster.

I doubt there's any other long-standing matchup in baseball that's this close: The Dodgers beat the Cubs last night, and now lead them 1015-1014 in their all-time series. (h/t True Blue LA)

The Dodgers found a way to win last night without Claudio Vargas, but you can add Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness to the list of Dodger fans who wish they hadn't traded him for Vinny Rottino.

Add Major League Baseball to the list of sports working to take concussions more seriously. Brian Costa of the Newark Star-Ledger has a great read on some of the advancements in treatment of concussions, and the steps being taken to protect players who have had one.

Without the internet, we probably never would have known: Plunk Everyone says Brendan Ryan's grand slam last night was the only slam in 2009 hit with two men on base who reached via HBP.

On this day in 1982, Rollie Fingers pitched the last two innings of the Brewers' 3-2 win over the Mariners, becoming the first pitcher ever to record 300 saves. If Trevor Hoffman sticks around for one more season, the Brewers could also have the first pitcher to reach 600.

Happy birthday today to Craig Counsell, who turns 39, Lou Collier, who played in 138 games for the Brewers between 1999 and 2001 and turns 36, and John Henry Johnson, who appeared in 29 games as a Brewer in 1986 and 1987 and turns 53.

Drink up.

First Half Minors Recap Part 1: Pawtucket and Portland

Ben Buchanan — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:00:22 -0000

Portland Sea Dog and top prospect Lars Anderson's slow start has headlined an up-and-down Sea Dogs lineup. Via i225.photobucket.com

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The end of June marks the halfway point in the season for the upper levels of the minor leagues, and the starting point of short-season ball. For the A-level teams (Salem and Greenville), it also represents a fresh start, as the records are reset and the team with the best record to that point is granted a post-season berth. As significant a milestone as this is, it makes sense to use it as a time to look back at the season thus far, and for teams like the Lowell Spinners and GCL Red Sox, the season to come.

At the top of the Red Sox farm system, the Pawtucket Red Sox has been all about the pitching. Filled primarily with insurance guys who would play in case of injuries in the main club, the lineup is solid but largely uninteresting. Early backups Chris Carter and Jeff Bailey provided mostly frustration for Sox fans, and Aaron Bates is a relatively recent addition. The rotation and bullpen, on the other hand, have stolen the show.

Though their torrid starts have slowed some, Clay Buchholz and Michael Bowden have done everything and more to prove they are ready for the big leagues—particularly Buchholz, whose complete game 1-hitter has highlighted a dominant season. Clay sports a 1.93 ERA, a .172 batting average against, and a 69:22 K:BB ratio which is actually marred by his last 3 games, over which he's given up 10 bases on balls. Bowden, though at first putting up better numbers than even Buchholz, has been brought back to Earth by a 4 inning, 6-run effort to start June off, and a 1 inning disaster giving up six earned runs again. Still, a 3.26 ERA is nothing to sneeze at.

The bullpen has been an unsung treasure for Pawtucket. While the big name in Daniel Bard has left to find his place in the crowded Boston bullpen, he leaves behind a ridiculous 29 strikeouts in 16 innings—one of them immaculate—and a 1.13 ERA.

Picking up the slack are a pair of journeymen castoffs from the Baltimore Orioles in Fernando Cabrera and Rocky Cherry. Cherry's 24:17 K:BB ratio in 33 innings and his WHIP of 1.29 suggest his 1.35 ERA is somewhat lucky, but Cabrera has been nothing but impressive. After struggling with control last year, Cabrera has only walked 11 in 32 innings while striking out 33. His 19 hits bring his WHIP up to a paltry .94.

Other notables in the pen are Hunter Jones, who had an unimpressive stint with Boston during Daisuke's first DL trip, and Javier Lopez who seemed to fall off a cliff after an impressive 2008 campaign and has had trouble even in AAA.

Unfortunately for Pawtucket, the experienced lineup and impressive pitching hasn't quite got them in the postseason yet, sitting 4.5 games back of the perennial powerhouse Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, and a game back in the wild card race.

If Pawtucket is the system's pitching powerhouse, than Portland is where you'll find the offense. Josh Reddick, Lars Anderson, and Ryan Kalish are all top-10 prospects in the system with Anderson leading the way, and catcher Mark Wagner has been having a spectacular year offensively and defensively. But where everything seems to be going right for Wagner, the other 3 have all faced growing pains.

Lars Anderson was mired in a well-documented slump resulting in a particularly bad May (.194/.318/.376), and while he seems to've come out of it somewhat in June, his numbers have dipped again somewhat and he's not really outperforming his April numbers by that much. Josh Reddick got off to a fantastic start, clobbering 6 home runs in April en route to a line of .288/.358/.644, but missed all of may with an injury and hasn't found his groove yet. He's yet to hit another home run, and is only hitting .239/.255/.304 on the month. Ryan Kalish is also seeing depressed numbers after a fantastic start. Never really a big-power guy, Kalish put on a show in 32 games in Salem,hitting 5 home runs in 32 games and accruing a .504 slugging percentage. Kalish experienced the typical post-promotion slump, and managed an OPS of only .445 while striking out in around 30% of his plate appearances with Portland in May. Kalish has showed significant signs of improvement, however, posting a .738 OPS in June with a .355 OBP, striking out only 5 times so far.

Wagner has also hit something of a road bump in June, which could be considered regression to the mean for him. A .321/.371/.434 line is by no means disappointing for the month, though, and Wagner still appears to be on the fast track to AAA. The former pitcher is also still throwing out about 70% of base stealers.

Other notables in Portland's lineup include Jorge Jimenez, who has returned to Earth somewhat after a stellar April, Bubba Bell who was recently promoted to Pawtucket, and Argenis Diaz who is in the middle of a very disappointing season and not showing any signs of coming out of it.

The pitching staff in Portland is limited to essentially 2 names: Junichi Tazawa and Felix Doubront. Though both are currently on the DL, these appear to be phantom injuries basically intended to rest the pair for a week or so. Tazawa is currently sporting a 2.92 ERA after getting off to a slow start against the more advanced MiLB competition, and seems to be less walk-happy than a certain countryman of his, keeping his BB/9 below 3 while striking out a tad unde 9 per. Tazawa's ceiling is still questionable, but as of right now there's no reason not to think he can pitch in the majors some day.

Doubront has managed to survive and eke out a 3.19 ERA despite 50 hits and 23 walks in 53 innings. A high strikeout total has contributed to that likely as much as a 1.26 GO:AO ratio, as has a relatively low home run count of 4. Whether he can keep it up or not is definitely in question.

The lack of consistency in the lineup, as well as mediocre contributions from most of the rotation and bullpen has led the Sea Dogs to a 32-36 record, 6.5 games back of the division-leading Connecticut defenders. It seems they're unlikely to improve on it, too, with one of their best batters, Aaron Bates, having been promoted and with Mark Wagner not far behind. Even Tazawa might not be too far from a Pawtucket trip depending on the fates of Buchholz and Bowden. Then again, the big names in the lineup will hopefully not be held down for long, and a resurgent offense could be enough.

Wednesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 13:31:54 -0000

Some things to read while celebrating Gorman's birthday.

To be honest, I was going to open the Mug today with a joke about Anthony Witrado, especially since his chat yesterday provided ample ammunition, but I think it might be time to back off a bit. I'm getting increasingly concerned that our discussions about Witrado are becoming far too personal, and I think it might be time for me to step in.

Let me be the first to acknowledge that I'm not a fan of Witrado's work in the least. His work is consistently inaccurate and the quality of his writing is significantly below what one would expect from a professional working for a large newspaper. At one point a couple of weeks ago I asked around and received no one to compare him to, meaning it's possible he's major league baseball's worst beat writer.

With that said, the conversation about him over the last week or so has crossed a line I'm not comfortable with. I doubt we're done criticizing his work in this space, and that's fine, but if you intend to do it, I'd appreciate it if the criticism was focused on his work and the personal attacks were dropped. Thanks.

Moving on, a rumor popped up yesterday suggesting the Brewers may be interested in Jake Peavy (as noted in this FanPost), but the rumor was quickly squashed by Tom H. and Doug Melvin. As Tom H. notes, even if the Brewers had a package of players the Padres were interested in and Peavy was willing to waive his no trade clause, it's unlikely the Brewers would be willing or able to pick up Peavy's salary at this point, unless players like Mike Cameron, Bill Hall or Jeff Suppan were involved in the trade.

Ryan Braun is expected back in Brewer camp today and, assuming his sore intercostal isn't giving him any trouble, he could be back in the Brewer lineup today. It sounds like the team wants to get him as many at bats as possible over the last week or so of camp, which could limit the at bats for some of the other corner outfielders in camp.

In yesterday's Mug I mentioned a note from Tom H. suggesting the Brewers were considering keeping their players who were out of options over players who still had options, simply to avoid having to put players on waivers. That idea hasn't been very popular around the Brewer blogosphere, with both PocketDoppler and View From Bernie's Chalet weighing in against it.

I don't think anyone will be opposed to better production from Craig Counsell. Counsell has abandoned his "human question mark" batting stance and leads the Brewers in batting average and OBP this spring.

At least one of the position battles in camp is over, as Todd Coffey has won a job in the bullpen. With the way things are headed right now, he may get a chance to close.

It looks like Manny Parra's back stiffness isn't going to turn out to be serious: Parra threw a bullpen session and should be ready to go for his scheduled start Friday.

Braden Looper will take the mound for the first time in the Cactus League on Thursday. Adam McCalvy has a story about Looper's family and their newest addition, a soon-to-be two year old Chinese orphan named Gracyn.

While adopting may be a dream for some, Keep Turning Up The Heat! is dreaming about Rickie Weeks, 600 foot home runs, and retirement. In a semi-related note, MLB FanHouse says Don't Sleep on the Brewers in 2009.

In other camps:

Blue Jays: Matt Clement has been cut from major league camp, but may refuse the assignment and become a free agent.
Mets: Freddy Garcia will remain with the team and report to minor league camp.
Rays: David Price will open the 2009 season in the minors.
Red Sox: Signed Rocky Cherry to a minor league deal. The Mets had selected him from the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft.

So, what about the Cubs? They're widely considered the front runner, and in some places they're considered a lock to win the NL Central in 2009. FanGraphs organizational rankings have them at #7. (The Brewers have made the top 6.) With that said, it appears I'm not the only one who thinks they could be in line for a major disappointment in 2009. Miller Park Drunk lists some of the concerns they face.

The Marlins will get their new stadium after all, and will become the Miami Marlins in 2012. All of that is great, but Babes Love Baseball asks the same question I want answered: Even in a new stadium, will anyone come to their games?

The internet based community mourns a great loss this morning. John Brattain, who had written for several sites, passed away yesterday due to complications from heart surgery. He was 43. As I paged through the news and blogs this morning I've found dozens of mentions of his passing, which demonstrates how many lives he touched. Here are two, from Baseball Digest Daily and The Hardball Times. The BDD one includes links to several more.

Drink up.

Tuesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 14:06:39 -0000

Some things to read while turning a wine bottle into a terrarium.

Before the Brewers/Cubs game yesterday, Braden Looper pitched a simulated game and completed two innings despite being struck in the head by a line drive. (h/t FanShot) Looper is still on pace to be ready for Opening Day and could start a Cactus League game as soon as this weekend.

Mike Rivera is also ready for game action, and will get the start Wednesday when the Brewers travel to Tucson to take on the Rockies.

The sore intercostal muscle that pulled Ryan Braun out of Sunday's WBC game is still not believed to be serious, but Braun will undergo an MRI anyway, just to be sure.

Elsewhere, the Brewers sent a couple more pitchers down to minor league camp yesterday: R.J. Swindle and Chase Wright. It's a bit of a surprise move, as Swindle was expected to compete for the LOOGY spot in the bullpen and Wright had pitched well in camp. It's possible this means Lindsay Gulin is now in the running for that spot.

Some visual evidence of yesterday's game:

Bill Hall tells Corey Hart to talk to the hand.
Ken Macha congratulates Hart following his home run.
Prince Fielder with a headfirst slide into third.
Rickie Weeks has an impressive vertical leap...but not the baseball.

Speaking of Rickie Weeks, Miller Park Drunk has come to his defense following Rob Neyer and Bill James' assessment that the Brewers should shuffle their defensive lineup and move him out of the infield.

Cory Provus has a blog over at the Sports Bubbler. Today, in his first post, he discusses Corey Hart, Chris Duffy and Casey McGehee. Tomorrow: Brewers with first names starting with a different letter.

Speaking of McGehee, he's the subject of today's JS Spring Training profile.

On predictions, projections, etc:

Walkoff Walk is picking the Brewers to finish fourth in the Central, but predicting a monster season for Manny Parra.
Bleed Cubbie Blue predicts the Brewers will finish with a win total somewhere in the mid-80's, but finish second in the Central and miss the playoffs.
Baseball Reflections has the Brewers winning 80-85 games and finishing no better than second.

Stories from other camps:

Astros: Signed Ivan Rodriguez to a one year, $1.5 million deal. They also may open the season with Jose Capellan in the rotation.
Marlins: Returned Rule 5 pick Zach Kroenke to the Yankees.
Mets: Will return Rule 5 pick Rocky Cherry to the Orioles. They also signed Junior Spivey to a minor league deal.

So, let's say you're managing the Atlanta Braves. You missed out on trading for Jake Peavy this winter and signed Derek Lowe instead. I understand you'd try to justify it, but do you really want to do it by citing six starts in the postseason and World Baseball Classic? There's roughly 112 issues with that analysis.

Speaking of the WBC, as injuries continue to decimate Team USA, there's an increasing chance manager Davey Johnson will forfeit the WBC. If that happens this may very well be the last World Baseball Classic, which would be a shame because it sounds like Cuban press conferences are hilarious.

Aside from being former Brewers, what do Kevin Barker, Mark Loretta and Russell Branyan all have in common? They're three of just seven players to receive an intentional walk during spring training.

Baseball Musings continues to project team offense for 2009. Today, the Astros check in at 4.46 runs per game, up from 4.42 last season.

Last week I posted a graph from Beyond the Box Score showing run expectancy by pitch location. The Baseball Analysts have taken it a step further and broken down run expectancy by location and pitch type and have also broken down home runs by pitch location.

You won't see any more all black maple bats in major league baseball this season, but you will see a black dot on existing maple bats. Larry Stone of the Seattle Times explains some of baseball's rule changes regarding bats.

Meanwhile, across town, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer is folding, effective immediately.

Oh, and no matter how bad the economy gets, you really shouldn't take a job with Lenny Dykstra.

Drink up.

Rays 11, Orioles 6: Hey, Evelyn...

SC — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 05:32:39 -0000

(NSFW, y'all. Little bit o' cursin'.)

Hey, pitching staff? Can we ask you a question? Have you got a moment?

May Matt Wieters come to Baltimore and be our Dottie Hinson.

Rays 4, Orioles 2: Yada, yada, yada...

SC — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 03:25:27 -0000

Three a-holes going as Chuck Liddell for Halloween (which I realize is a month away) [via d.yimg.com]

Even in a year where we were "surprised" by a "competitive" Orioles team, the Birds are doing their best to remind us that this is yet another crap season from a franchise that has been embarrassing us in public in front of God and everybody for over a decade.

With their sixth straight loss, the O's are 4-15 in September, meaning very little at the end of the day, perhaps, but the familiar September swoon is nonetheless old hat. Take your Orioles Magic DVDs and toss 'em -- this team is no different than the rest.

Bad pitchers pitching badly, 3 0-year old minor leagues hitting a little bit, making some people think they're legitimate major leaguers for next year. You name it, the O's are doing it. Again.

The truth is that this team is nowhere near contention. Not even close. Aubrey Huff isn't going to be putting up .950 OPS numbers every year, as this year had a 150-point jump in that particular statistic. The only truly viable members of the FUTURE of this club that we have run out regularly this year are Nick Markakis, Adam Jones, Jeremy Guthrie, and maybe Jim Johnson. Everyone else is old or getting there, or just not very good.

We've got Matt Wieters, sure, but even Wieters, Markakis and Jones (if Jones starts hitting more than he did this year) don't simply measure up to most teams on their own, particularly in a loaded division that is more than just Boston and New York. The fourth-place Jays are 10 games over .500, for the love of pete, and they had some troubles this year. The Yankees aren't just going to go down without a fight, either, so don't simply expect that. Boston will load up with another good team. The Rays' best players are young.

Gonna be a long road, y'all. This process will not be quick, nor will it be easy. What looked like fun earlier this year has dragged out to another forgettable, awful finish.