Jim McLennan
Mar 29, 2008 Jun 01, 2012 5049 35013
Jim McLennan was born in Scotland, but has been a Diamondbacks fan since before there was a team, having stared into the hole that would become their stadium, on his first trip to Phoenix in 1997. He moved to Arizona in 2000 and married Chris, a.k.a. Mrs. SnakePit in 2002, proposing to her immediately after the team won the World Series the previous year. He had to do it twice, because she didn't hear him the first time. They live in West Phoenix with SnakePit Jr, their other child, the SnakePitette having moved out.
Jim started blogging in 2003, his first venture [now long evaporated from the tubes of the Internet] being called "But It's a DRY Heat..." He was asked by Blez to join the SB Nation in 2005, and his first post here followed on March 15. He also started DiamondbacksBullpen.org, a forum devoted to the team, though leaves the day-to-day running of that site to others.
He works for a web hosting company, two blocks from Chase Field, and when not cheering for the Diamondbacks, watches more films than is probably good for him. His specialties are horror, action and SF; some idea of his tastes can be found at his other sites, trashcity.org and girlswithguns.org. Readers of a nervous disposition might do best to stay clear. He also enjoys reading, but wishes he had more time for that, travel and sarcasm.
website: Trash City
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June Guest Recappers Sign Up!
by Jim McLennan on May 31, 2012 8:57 PM EDT
on AZ Snake Pit
The following Sunday games are open for guest recapping. Just post a comment if you want to do one - we'll help you out with the bells and whistles, but it's all about getting new voices up on the 'Pit. Some interesting match-ups here, including interleague play against Oakland and Anaheim. Here's June's list:
The Mirage of "Productive Outs"
by Jim McLennan on May 31, 2012 1:00 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks Features
on AZ Snake Pit
"There is no such thing as a productive out. Outs are sacred, as you only have 27 of them - therefore never give them up."
- - Billy Beane
If you've listened to any D-backs broadcast over the past couple of weeks, you have probably heard a great deal of talk about "productive outs" - and, in particular, the Diamondbacks failures in this situation. There's no doubt the team are bad in this area: through Tuesday's game the team was dead-last in the National League, in terms of both number of productive outs and the percentage of chances for such (PO%), which they converted. But how much does this matter?
Let's dig a little deeper and see how important they are.
Pick 6 T-shirt Contest Update
by Jim McLennan on May 31, 2012 12:10 PM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
Fell like a challenge? Here's the thought of our overlords today
Don't forget our Thursday Theme Day! Pick one player from each of the six teams playing today. (HOU/LAD/BOS/DET/MIL/COL)
— SB Nation Pick 6 (@SBNPick6) May 31, 2012
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Quite a high scoring day, with the top five from Wednesday all moving in to the top five of the daily best. tstack1014 and others benefited from the power of Carlos Gonzales, who went 4-for-5 with three runs scored, four RBI and three homers, for a total of 45.6 points - or, as I call it, "a good week". stl775 moves to the top of the board, with a 3.3 point margin over G.O.B. But especially on a day like today, with only three games, a lot can change. Things don't get under way until the late afternoon, so you've got time to make your picks - bear the challenge on top in mind when you do so. It won't matter if you don't, but I like the concept of challenge days like this.
Gameday Thread, #51: 5/30 vs. Giants
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 9:30 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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Dear All,
God has extended His mercy for another week. The new important date is May 30 - May 31 ( Thursday morning).
Be well prepared for the "big one" to come to the Bay area in the month of May. God bless !
margaret Huang
Dear All,
Please be watchful and pray each Wednesday late night/Thursday morning. I feel strongly that an earthquake will occur during this month of May.
In my dream last night, the Lord told me to read Psalm 24 and Psalm 30.
( I feel in my heart that God will not extend mercy beyond May )
Look, I'm just passing on the above spam mail I received this afternoon... Line-up and stuff after the jump.
This Day In Diamondbacks History: May 30
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 8:32 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
Overall: 7-5 - Home: 1-2 - Road: 6-3
- 2003: Curt Schilling suffered a fracture in his pitching hand after being struck by a line drive off the bat of a Padre in the seventh inning of the 8-3 win at Qualcomm. Though he would get the win, Schilling would miss six weeks due to the injury. And which San Diego hitter was responsible for the blow? None other than future Diamondback Sean Burroughs. Steve Finley had three hits and drove in three runs for Arizona, with Alex Cintron, Danny Bautista and Junior Spivey each having two-hit games.
SnakeBytes, 5/30: Crying Over Spilt Melky Edition
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 6:00 PM EDT
in Snake Bytes
on AZ Snake Pit
So, we face Tim Lincecum looking to avoid the sweep. Funny how that proposition is a great deal less scary that it would have been a season or two ago.
Recaps
- [AP] Cabrera leads Giants past Diamondbacks 3-1 - ''Look, we had our opportunities to beat him and we let it go,'' manager Kirk Gibson said. ''It's as simple as that. Not to take anything away from him, but we're much better than this.''
- [AZ Central] Diamondbacks mistakes lead to loss against Giants - "It feels as if they've lost about as many games due to a defensive misplay or a baserunning mistake as they have because of a bad outing by a pitcher or a lack of hitting."
- [MLB] D-backs squander chances vs. Giants - Unhappy Gibby Is Unhappy. "I'm not at the plate. I don't have any answers for you as to why we didn't hit the ball out of the infield. We had a chance to probably take control of that game and were unable to do so."
Diamondbacks Trends: May 23-29.
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 3:00 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks Trends
on AZ Snake Pit
'charmer is off at a funeral today - no, not for the 2012 season, though thanks for asking - so I'm pinch-hitting. But as she wrote last week: "Just when it seems like we might be steering the ships right, a wave rolls up and splashes water all over and knocks out the navigation equipment." That's pretty much the way it feels again: we took the series against Milwaukee, but the offense pretty much laid down and let San Francisco trample them. It has been a 3-3 record for the Diamondbacks this week. Hands up if it feels like one. Didn't think so. But let's peel apart the numbers a bit further, and see how the team has done on an individual level.
Pick 6 T-shirt Contest Update
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 11:43 AM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
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Another close day in the standings, porty99 being powered by Yadier Molina to the top spot, and also takes over at the top of the daily best board, being the only player to crack 60 points this week. Plenty of time for that to change, of course. Bryn21 is just ahead of imstillhungry95 for the weekly prize, yesterday's leader stl775 dropping to fourth, but still very much in the running. About 30 mins to get your selections in for today, so if you have not already done so, get your skates on.
Down On The Farm: Minor-League Recap, 5/29
by Jim McLennan on May 30, 2012 10:01 AM EDT
in Diamondbacks Farm Teams
on AZ Snake Pit
BattleMoses is currently trying to figure out how to recap Tuesday's defeat at the hands of the Giants, without gnawing off his own limbs, so I'm helping out on the minor-league recaps for the night. It was a good night for Arizona, only a ninth-inning blown lead by South Bend standing between our affiliates and a five-game sweep - Mobile played a double-header. We outscored the opposition 27-16 in taking four of the contests.
Snakelet of the Day:
Fidel Pena (South Bend): 3-for-4, BB, two 2B, two RBI
Gameday Thread, #50: 5/59 vs. Giants
by Jim McLennan on May 29, 2012 9:30 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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So I got my new glasses today, which is kinda weird. They're a different prescription, and sit in a different place on my nose, so right now, I perpetually feel like they're about to fall off my face, even though they are actually pretty stable. And I'm not sure I am actually seeing any better, but suspect that's probably just my eyes rebelling after too many years with the old, increasingly inaccurate prescription. It is nice, however, not to be peering through glass that resembles the ice at the end of a particularly tough period of Coyotes hockey. It may not make the D-backs play any better, but at least they'll be in focus.
BattleMoses on the recap tonight, so hopefully he'll be describing a win as we square the series up.
This Day In Diamondbacks History: May 29
by Jim McLennan on May 29, 2012 8:30 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
Overall: 4-8 - Home: 0-4 - Road: 4-4
- 1999: Byung-Hyun Kim, the youngest player in the Majors at the time, recorded a save in his Major League debut, preserving an 8-7 win for the Diamondbacks over the Mets in New York. That's kinda rare: Frank Gracesqui of the 2004 Marlins was the only other NL player since 1991 to record a "legit" save in his debut (legit = not last man out of the bullpen, or a three-inning blowout game). Kim pitched a perfect ninth with a strikeout, while Jay Bell had two hits and three RBI for Arizona.
Pick 6 T-shirt Contest
by Jim McLennan on May 29, 2012 12:30 PM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
| Player | Pts | |
| 1 | stl775 | 53.5 |
| 2 | imstillhungry95 | 50.2 |
| 3 | Bryn21 | 49.3 |
| 4 | Sidewayzinthe505 | 43.4 |
| 5 | dbacksfan414 | 43.2 |
And we move in to Week 3, with the Monday results in the bag. stl775 is in the lead across the board, with Rafael Furcal their best player, but it's still very early days. 11:15 am first pitch in today's game, so you've still got a little while to get Tuesday's selections in, and make your push for one of the two T-shirts available this week, to the best daily score and the best cumulative score!
Down On The Farm: Minor-League Recap, 5/28
by Jim McLennan on May 29, 2012 10:01 AM EDT
in Diamondbacks Farm Teams
on AZ Snake Pit
It was a Memorial Day to remember for the Diamondbacks' affiliates, all three who saw action not only picking up victories, but doing so on the road. And they did so with some style, outscoring the opposition by a combined margin of 23 runs to 7. Leading pitching prospect Trevor Bauer was in action for the Reno Aces, but doesn't quite get to crack the honor roll for today.
Snakelets of the Day:
Jonathan Griffin (High-A): 3-for-5, two HR, four RBI
Ryan Wheeler (Triple-A): 3-for-5, HR, 2B, three RBI, SB
This Day In Diamondbacks History: May 28
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 10:00 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
Overall: 7-6 - Home: 2-2 - Road: 5-4
- 1957. Kirk Gibson born. Hah! "Born," they say. Forged by Norse giants in the bowels of a volcano, the bits they discarded then being used to create Thor's hammer, more like. What might you not know about Gibson? In 1987, he took a Cessna 206 to a record height of 25,200. The NY Times said, "A Cessna 206 has reached 22,000 feet before, but not with the same specifications as Gibson's plane." I believe the plane was going to give at that height. Then Cap'n Kirk glared at it. Three thousand extra feet ensued.
Diamondbacks 2, Giants 4: Memorial Daze For Cahill
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 8:41 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks Game Reports
on AZ Snake Pit
Record: 22-27. Pace: 73-89. Change on last season: -3
You know how there are games where the team falls behind, but you still have the sense that they can come back and win? This afternoon was not one of those games. Arizona fell behind 4-0 by the end of the second, and even as they came back to have the tying run on base with one out in the ninth. I never had the sense that they were truly in this one. Truth be told, I spent much of the game trapped in the Mato Grosso of cables behind the TV, trying to create some kind of order out of chaos. I was more successful in my endeavors than the Diamondbacks.
Gameday Thread, #49: 5/28 vs. Giants
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 4:30 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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Early start, this being Memorial Day and stuff. The morning evaporated pretty quickly, but I'm all set now, and ready for us to face...another soft-tossing left-hander. Welp. It's like every pitcher in the league turns into the bastard child of Jamie Moyer and Doug Davis when they face us. Zito beat us when we faced him a couple of weeks ago, though three runs in six innings is hardly dominant. It was rather more that Joe Saunders sucked that day, which won't be an issue this afternoon. Now, about Trevor Cahill... He'd handled SF well prior to the last outing on May 12, allowing one run in the preceding four starts. More of that would be welcome.
Line-up and stuff after the jump.
Diamondbacks Round Table: Miggy 4 Life Edition
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 3:03 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks Features
on AZ Snake Pit
The home-stand ended with a split of the six games, which is probably better than it looked early on. But the big news was probably the signing of catcher Miguel Montero to a long-term deal. Our panel discusses this extension, the games past and future, and cracks open the popcorn in prospect of a trip to the movie theater. Guest panelist DeDxDbacKxJroK joins the team for this round - jjwaltrip and imstillhungry95 are on the waiting list. If you want to join them, simply say so in the comments.
Lost a series to the Dodgers, but bounced back to win one against the Brewers, our first victorious home set since opening weekend. What do you take from the week?
Pick 6 T-Shirt Contest and AZSP Fantasy Baseball
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 12:54 PM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
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Happy Memorial Day! All the weekly contests have been reset to zero, so there's never been a better time to get on board for those. As for last week, congrats to imstillhungry95 for the best score on Sunday, but particularly to jzzfanj for a thoroughly dominating performance which will certainly see him get a T-shirt. Not heard yet from our overlords what happens to the second one, but they'll be in touch with whoever they decided gets it - might be after Memorial Day, I'm guessing. On to the fantasy league. Here's the quick results, details in the usual place:
AZ SnakePit 4, Phoenix Platypi 4
Mizzoula Osprey 8, soco knows 1
Alabama Slammers 10, Los Wailoracles 0
Blonde Streaks 3, The Fighting Amish 7
Sofa King Juiced 4, CompleteGameShutout 5
Lil Bitches 3, MyWieterGetzLongoria 7
Ignatius J. Rallies 7, Waffles 1
Down on the Farm: Minor League Recap, 5/27
by Jim McLennan on May 28, 2012 10:00 AM EDT
in Diamondbacks Farm Teams
on AZ Snake Pit
With the Bay Bears having the day off, the other three of Arizona's aaffiliates were on the road, and the results were mixed. Two of the three went down to defeat, though both kept their game close. The most exciting contest was the sole victory, where Visalia edged San Jose, courtesy of an extra-inning homer. It's to that game we turn for our honored player, even though he did not feature in the decision.
Snakelet of the Day:
Andrew Chafin (High-A): 8 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 11 K
This Day In Diamondbacks History: May 27
by Jim McLennan on May 27, 2012 10:00 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
Overall: 4-8 - Home: 2-4 - Road: 2-4
- 2001: The Diamondbacks stunned the Padres at Qualcomm, scoring four in the ninth off future Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman, to turn a two-run deficit into a 6-4 victory. The damage was done on a pair of two-run homers: Erubiel Durazo with no outs, and then Reggie Sanders with one out. Brian Anderson allowed two runs, one earned, over seven innings, but Byung-Hyun walked three of the five batters faced and was charged with two runs to give San Diego their lead. David Dellucci had three hits for AZ.
Gameday Thread, #48: 5/27 vs. Brewers
by Jim McLennan on May 27, 2012 3:30 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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Phew. That was close. We had an electrician over at SnakePit Towers, after one of our electrical outlets went a bit wrong. Well, when I say "a bit wrong", it was a little more than that, but I hate to use alarmist language like "on fire"... Anyway, for some reason, he insisted on turning the electricity off to replace the sockets - sheesh, some people have just no consideration - but everything was completed and power restored, before the inhabitants regressed into a state of barbarism and chaos. SnakePit Jr. is still running around with a pig's head on a stick. Not sure what that's all about.
Anyway, what looked like an imminent SnakePit riot in the middle of the third inning last night turned out okay. We can take the series behind the returning Hudson, if he is able to stave off a Wolf attack. imstillhungry95 will be your guest recapper, so stick around for that. Line-up and stuff after the jump.
Pick 6 T-Shirt Contest
by Jim McLennan on May 27, 2012 12:37 PM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
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Do you think Jeff is beginning to get the hang of this game or something? For we have our first back-to-back winner, jzzfanj following yesterday's victory with another win, this time powered by Johan Santana and J.J. Hardy.. However he "only" came second in the SB Nation, missing out on top spot by eight-tenths of a point. With a lead of over 60 in the weekly standings, and the top two places in the daily best charts, he seems assured of a shirt. I'm not sure what happens to the other one, so have got an email in to our overlords for clarification. If I'd to guess, probably second place in the weekly chart, which is still wide open, with 24 points covering the next ten places.
Half an hour or so to get the last picks in for the week!
Gameday Thread, #47: 5/26 vs. Brewers
by Jim McLennan on May 26, 2012 9:29 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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The Diamondbacks need to win tonight and tomorrow afternoon in order to aboid losing a seventh consecutive series at home. Wailord will certainly be hoping they do, so he can break his unimpressive losing streak of recaps, which stretches back to last season. Saturday has not be Arizona's friend this year. Hopefully we can buck that particular trend tonight. Otherwise, I'll be bailing early to watch another movie. Not much of a threat, but it's all I've got, I'm afraid.
Line-up and other stuff after the jump.
This Day in Diamondbacks History: May 26
by Jim McLennan on May 26, 2012 8:30 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
- 1975: Travis Lee born. Ah, I remember Mrs. SnakePit (to be, as she was back then) excitedly sending me his rookie card before the 1998 season. We paid some obscene amount of signing bonus! He had three hits in our opening game, including the first homer in team history! He was going to be awesome! But after coming third in that season's Rookie of the Year...not so much. He hit .237 and .232 before being part of the package sent to the Phillies for Curt Schilling. Still got the card, somewhere....
Miguel Montero Press Conference on FSAZ at 5:30pm
by Jim McLennan on May 26, 2012 8:05 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks News
on AZ Snake Pit
You can watch the #Dbacks Miguel Montero press conference live on FOXSportsArizona.com at 5:30 pm
— FOX Sports Arizona (@FOXSPORTSAZ) May 26, 2012
The Diamondbacks And Large Contracts: Boon Or Bust?
by Jim McLennan on May 26, 2012 5:00 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks News
on AZ Snake Pit
As will be officially announced by the Diamondbacks later today, catcher Miguel Montero has signed the biggest contract in the history of the franchise. The deal, running through 2017, is reported to be for $60m, which breaks the previous mark of $52.4, set by Randy Johnson when he signed for Arizona, as a free agent, before the 1999 season. What has the team's track record been with regard to large contracts like this one? Have they worked out to the benefit of the Diamondbacks? Or have the risks associated with such a large gamble not paid off?
After the jump, we'll look at the big contracts signed in the desert, and see whether they turned out, in hindsight, to be justified.
Pick 6 T-shirt Contest Update
by Jim McLennan on May 26, 2012 2:29 PM EDT
in Fantasy Baseball
on AZ Snake Pit
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Whoops.jpg. Guess who accidentally deleted the original update, thinking he was tidying up the unpublished drafts? That'd be me. Sorry to whoever commented on that post. Here's a copy of the table, showcasing jzzfanj, who was best in the SB Nation yesterday, and it wasn't even close. The stats for this week actually include the early going in today's games - as I recall, Bryn21 was top at the start of play, so we'll see how the rest of Saturday unfolds.
Gameday Thread, #46: 5/25 vs. Brewers
by Jim McLennan on May 25, 2012 9:00 PM EDT
in Gameday Threads
on AZ Snake Pit
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Last time these two met, the same two pitchers were facing off in Game 5 of the 2011 NLDS, which ended up being a pretty epic confrontation, albeit one which the bad guys won. As ZM pointed out, neither side has exactly set the baseball world on fire in their quests to repeat as champions of the NL Central and West. Both teams will see this as a chance to right the ship and head in the intended direction. Only one will be right.
Line-up - but no Sixty Million Dollar Man - after the jump.
This Day In Diamondbacks History: May 25
by Jim McLennan on May 25, 2012 8:00 PM EDT
in Randomness
on AZ Snake Pit
- 1980: Two of our starting line-up (Kubel and Young) were born today, but let's go with a third D-back, the late, fairly lamented Scott Hairston. He was a third-round draft-pick in 2001, and was originally a second-baseman, starting 83 games there for us in 2004. The errors there forced a move to the outfield, and at one point looked like he could become a useful fourth man in the Arizona outfield, behind Chris Young, Justin Upton and Carlos Quentin. Then we re-signed Eric Byrnes instead.
Report: Miguel Montero, Diamondbacks Agree On Contract Extension
by Jim McLennan on May 25, 2012 7:15 PM EDT
in Diamondbacks News
on AZ Snake Pit
Jon Morosi is reporting the Arizona Diamondbacks and Miguel Montero have agreed on a five-year $60 million contract extension.
Source: #DBacks and Miguel Montero agree on five-year, $60 million extension. Press conference expected Saturday.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) May 25, 2012
If confirmed, the deal would keep Montero in an Arizona jersey through 2017. It plugs an obvious hole in the Diamondbacks line-up, with Montero becoming a free-agent at the end of the season, and no immediate obvious prospects in the farm system. Buster Olney states the deal does not include any no-trade clause.
The sides had been negotiating a deal before the season, but broke off to concentrate on the season. However, talks appear to have started up again in the past few days. The deal is for an additional year, and a great deal more money, than the four-year $32 million deal the Diamondbacks were apparently offering during spring, but is also short, on a per-year basis, of the five-year $75 million contract recently signed by Yadier Molina.
More thoughts and analysis after the jump.
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