SB Nation User Blog: by jiminy

They're liking Bartlett in Tampa

by jiminy — Mon, 19 May 2008 22:43:31 -0000

nice article about Bartlett here

http://www.tampabay.com/sports/article513298.ece

They point out his zone rating is 3rd in the AL, compared to last for their shortstops last year. They love how balls that used to get through are now becoming double plays. They even say he has "brought calm to the infield and confidence to the pitching staff." Glad someone appreciates him. Good luck down there...

In contrast, did you see this article about Delmon Young? It's the ultimate read-between-the-lines article, or damning-with-faint-praise if you prefer:

http://www.twincities.com/ci_9250301?IADID=Search-www.twincities.com-www.twincities.com

So does Young come to Vavra for help? "Oh, no, no, no, no, no," the hitting coach said. So you have to go to him with suggestions? "Well, you can try," Vavra said. "He's just kind of got his mind made up about what he's trying to get done, and I'm totally in agreement with it. It's just a matter of, there's maybe more efficient ways to get it done."

I don't know what's more depressing about this, that Young is so uninterested in taking advice, or that the coaching staff has to tiptoe around him so much and say they're totally in agreement with his lame approach. Young really does sound like a jerk.

I think he's motivated enough that eventually he'll stop beating himself; no one could enjoy making himself into such an easy out. But he is apparently just too arrogant to listen, so I guess we'll have to wait for him to figure it out himself. No sign of that happening yet, unfortunately

Kubel vs. Monroe

by jiminy — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 17:13:06 -0000

from http://www.twincities.com/ci_8722836?source=rss

"I'm going to go by matchups," Gardenhire said Thursday. "One guy might not handle changeups very well. The other guy (might be) not very good on a real good slider. So I'm going to start looking at pitchers like that, kind of decide on who I think has a better chance that night."

So which one can't hit sliders, and which can't hit changeups?

(No comment needed about the following)

It's not a strictly left-right decision, either, Gardenhire said.

"I don't like the word 'platoon' with those guys," he said. "I'm not big on that."

Letter to a Yankee Fan

by jiminy — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 01:10:12 -0000

A friend who is a Yankee fan (not an oxymoron, really) sent me this email after the Twins signed Joe Nathan to his huge contract extension:

"Frankly, this move baffles me. If Nathan were 24, I'd understand. Even 28.
But he's what, 33? How can you trade the best pitcher in baseball for
long-term prospects, but sign one of the top relievers to a long term deal?
How can you simultaneously start a player in centerfield that even his own
manager/GM agree is NOT READY and sign a high-profile reliever? That would
be like the Marlins signing Arod, but then trading Cabrera and Willis
anyway."

It took me a while to figure out why I disagreed. If the only legitimate goal is winning a world series, then maybe everyone should dismantle their team, time all their prospects to peak at one time, put all their eggs in one basket and make a run for it. (You're welcome, fans of the mixed metaphor.) But there's something about that that's just wrong. It's hard to put your finger on, but this is what I came up with -- if someone can explain why the Twins' way is better better, please post!

Here's one other perspective you might not have thought of, since you are a Yankee fan. It's very easy to fall into the trap of thinking there's one successful team and all the others as failures. Each game counts, in and of itself, not just as a meaningless steppingstone to the World Series. Winning more games than you lose means you had a winning season. You're better than most other teams! You don't have to win the world series to enjoy winning. A win's a win.

The Twins couldn't afford Santana or Hunter, but they could afford Nathan, who will provide their fans with much satisfaction and pleasure and help secure many real, honest to god wins. They may never win the world series again. So what. Their fans are still allowed to be happy about winning individual games. And that happiness counts. It matters.

Each time we go into the ninth with a lead over the Yankees and Nathan shuts those blowhards down we will be quite happy, believe me. We may not win the other two games of the series, and may even gripe about how it was unfair to have to face a team of all-stars. But even in a loss we'll enjoy a stolen home run by our fleet center fielder, or Liriano striking out Arod with the bases loaded, or Mauer throwing out Abreu or Damon.

You New Yorkers just don't know how to appreciate the little things sometimes. World series victories are kind of gauche, really. Those parades -- tacky. Hustle and never-say-die positive attitudes, that's what we admire. That stuff is worth a lot more than just buying a championship.

And the possibility remains that the hometown boys will rise up and climb to the top of the heap in spite of it all. I'd rather dream of that and not achieve it than celebrate a corrupt and hollow victory. Heck, it even happened -- twice! -- in 1987 and 1981. Our cup runneth over! Go Twins!

Be forewarned, our up and coming minor league pitchers stand at the ready in waves and waves. Our top five could all flop and we've got five more ready, and five more behind them. We will never go away! Baker, Bonser, Liriano, Slowey, Blackburn...Perkins, Duensing, Humber, Mulvey, Guerra...Robertson, Manship, Pino, Rainville, Swarzak..and that's not even counting Kyle Waldrop! And after that, there will be five more. Always.

Nothing you can say can make us go away. We're like gnats. Pests. A swarm of children that cannot, will not, ever be convinced by grownups to stop believing in the preposterous. You can stomp out our present, but you can't stomp out our future.

The Yankees and their fans alone are doomed to year after year of failure every time they do not win the World Series. So despite their grand resources, they fail more than any other city, because they do not understand that small victories are all around, all the time, for all of us to enjoy and savor. You would never think to envy us, the small, the meek, but you should, you should. We are truly the chosen people.

Garza delivery

by jiminy — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 03:59:47 -0000

I talked to a friend who was at Yankee Stadium the other day when Garza pitched. He was not impressed. He said Garza's delivery on his curveball looked so different from his fastball that he started announcing what the pitch would be before his release, and he was always right. He said the Yankees were sitting on his fastball and hammering it.

Does this ring true to you all? I didn't see the game. But considering all the Twins' concerns about Garza needing better off-speed pitches for his fastball to be effective, this was disturbing. It's a rare fastball that's unhittable when people know it's coming.

Boof's name

by jiminy — Sun, 10 Sep 2006 04:49:08 -0000

Pardon me if you already know this but I've been wondering about it all year, and espn finally cleared it up:

"Bonser, for the record, legally changed his given name, John, to his childhood nickname, Boof, in 2001."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=260909109

p.s. The Twins are within 3 of the division lead! And Liriano pitched three perfect innings in AAA! Woo-hoo!

The Big Hurt

by jiminy — Thu, 26 Jan 2006 22:51:29 -0000

Oakland just signed Frank Thomas for just $500K guaranteed, and $1.4M more if his ankle is healthy all season. He has to get 550 PA's to make a final $1.2M.

Wow. That, to me, is a classic low-risk, high-reward scenario.

Anyone else feeling a little envious right now?

And a little less excited about facing the A's in the playoffs?

Let's put it this way: Would you trade Nick Punto for Frank Thomas? Okay, if he stays healthy all year, you have to throw in Juan Castro as a ptbnl. And if he plays really great for an entire year -- the Frank Thomas of old -- then you're out a whopping 1.2 million cash. But he has to start all year to get it.

Don't get me wrong, I like the White signing. I'm not saying I prefer Thomas to White. But wouldn't you feel a lot more confident we'd have a DH all year if we had both? And if by some chance they both worked out, you could put White in the outfield. Imagine a 3-4-5 of Mauer-White-Thomas.

Sure, the odds are small that Thomas will ever be Thomas again. But at that price, so is the risk.

One caveat: only his ankle has a warranty, so if the Hurt hurts his back, you're out all $1.9M. Still, this looks to me like a good gamble by Billy Beane.