SB Nation User Blog: davidalanu

Sandberg to manage Iowa Cubs

davidalanu — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 22:07:23 -0000

Sandberg to manage Iowa Cubs

My refreshes on BCB are a little slow so apologies in advance if this has been covered, but the Des Moines Register is reporting that Ryno will be the I-Cubs skipper for 2010, replacing Bobby Dickerson, who is moving to the Orioles organization.

Slightly OT re: Cards

davidalanu — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:03:00 -0000

Slightly OT re: Cards

I found this article by Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch more than a little amusing. In explaining the Cards lukewarm interest in Jason Bay largely due to "a greater reliance on defensive metrics" Strauss also mentions two possible trade targets: Adam Dunn and Josh Willingman.

Apparently their interest in defense only applies to free agents, not trades.

OT: Joakim Noah makes Rick Morrissey eat his words

davidalanu — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:15:21 -0000

OT: Joakim Noah makes Rick Morrissey eat his words

As someone who is not a fan of Morrissey, and is enjoying watching Noah grow as a player, this was pretty amusing.

Restoring the Rosters

davidalanu — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 11:10:11 -0000

Restoring the Rosters

NBC Sports Matthew Pouliot has a great piece detailing what teams would look like if they could just have players they originally signed. Not surprising to any of us, I'm sure, the Cubs have done very well drafting, signing and developing pitchers. Position players? Yeech.

Trade deadline thoughts

davidalanu — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 02:49:29 -0000

I will preface this fanpost by saying if it is thought that this isn't worthy of a fanpost, I'll be happy to remove it. But this has been one of the most fascinating trade deadlines in recent memory, IMO. So, over a bootleg Yuengling or two, here are my thoughts on the past couple weeks activicties.

AL East

Yankees- they seem to finally be joining the rest of baseball in having to consider financial ramifications of trades. And valuing their young players. Whodathunkit?

Blue jays- Not sure whether or not to congratulate JP Ricciardi on sticking to his guns on keeping Halliday. It probably makes him a hero to his fanbase, but some of those offers would have been hard for me to turn down.

Orioles- Holy crap, the Orioles found somebody they can trade with!

Red Sox- they held on to Bucholtz and Bard and got who??

AL Central

Tigers- seem to have gotten a top end starter, but, wow, I've never looked at Washburn as more than a four or five. Methinks he's outkicking his coverage this year.

Indians- Will the last one in Cleveland please turn out the lights?

Kansas City- uh, um...really? They traded for Yuniesky Betancourt? Did Dayton Moore lose a bet?

Twins- Not a big Orlando Cabrera fan, but I would be the Twins will be in it till the end.

White Sox- Not a big Kenny Williams fan (well, at least not as big a fan as Kenny is, anyway), but you have to give him credit for not being afraid to take a chance. Probably the biggest riverboat gambler in MLB

AL West

Angels- The Anti-Kenny Williams. Always loaded with trading chips, but rarely willing to pull the trigger.

Mariners- I know they're 8 games out, but that still has to be disheartening to see one of your best pitchers go when you're having a rebound year.

Rangers- i wonder if they would have anted up for Halladay if he hadn't rejected them first. That could've been a helluva trade considering the Rangers farm system.

A's- Same old, same old. Always recycling.

NL East

NY Mets- Should I stay or should I go now? You shoulda went. This seasons toast and you should've been repositioning for next year. Your fans aren't stupid. They would've understood.

Phillies- They continue to act like a team that's not satisfied with one WS Championship and I admire the way they're going about their business. And they would've been stupid to have traded J.A. Happ plus a truckload of prospect for Halladay.

Marlins- Nick Johnson's a good pickup, but I don't think it'll help enough.

Nats- I have no idea what you do with that mess, but you better sign Strasburg or your fans will revolt. The '62 Mets have to be getting a little nervous. Their claim to fame may be slipping away.

NL Central

Cardinals- Holliday was a smart move, and may be enought to win the Central. I'd still be concerned about the pitching, though. Should be a fun two team race.

Brewers- See: Mets

Pirates- This isn't your first rodeo on being deadline sellers. Have you gotten any better at it?

Astros- 3.5 back or not, I don't think they're in it for the long haul. One of those betwixed and between deals. Should've sold, but were too close to justify it to their fanbase.

Cubs- Considering their needs, i wouldn't be surprised to see some waiver deals, especially if Johnson takes too long to come back.

NL West

Dodgers- Never thought I'd say it, but Colletti seems to be doing all the right things. The deal that didn't happen with the Padres is insane (and I mean that in a good, fascinating kind of way)

Giants- I've always thought him to be a fool, and a too vet-happy fool at that, but Sabean's doing a nice job this year, and 1B was a glaring hole he needed to fix.

D-Backs- Seems to me they should have gotten something for Garland and/or Davis.

Rockies- Hardest team for me to figure, and I still don't believe they're for real. That said they'll probably be the wild card and go to the WS.

Padres- See Cleveland

Is there much of a chance that Randy Wells is for real?

davidalanu — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:44:32 -0000

In looking over his minor league stats he's really only had one year that stands out as anything special, his 2005 season at high-A Daytona/AA West Tenn. He's given up just over a hit per inning in the minors, with a so-so 1.34 whip. And he'll be 27 in August.

That being said, he's obviously been outstanding in his five starts with the big club. I realize that there's no chance that he'll be able to keep putting up some of the numbers he's produced so far (24 hits in 37 innings, .911 whip), I am curious about what some of you who have followed him more closely think. Is he viable for the rotation for the rest of the year? What is his upside considered to be?

Josh Bard, anyone?

davidalanu — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 16:58:47 -0000

Josh Bard, anyone?

The Red Sox have released Josh Bard. He had a couple of very nice seasons with the Padres before completely tanking last year. I don't know what his defensive rep is, but he looks like he could be an upgrade offensively from Hill or Bako, and he's a switch hitter.

OT: Little League Pitching

davidalanu — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 17:09:46 -0000

OT: Little League Pitching

I hope this doesn't offend anyone, but I thought this would be a good group to pose this question to. I have an 11 year old son, and at the first little league meeting the kids were told to be ready to start seeing curve balls this year. If my son pitches, I will not allow him to throw curves, as I feel this is way too young of an age. Also, changing speeds and perfecting location of a "fast"ball is more important at 11, imo.

I would love to hear others' thoughts.

FoxSports' Perry (surprise) rips the Cubs

davidalanu — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:53:53 -0000

FoxSports' Perry (surprise) rips the Cubs

I'm not sure what the Cubs ever did to this guy, but he never seems to miss an opportunity to rip them. In this article, he says they had the 5th worst off-season, and will be lucky to win 90 games. Certainly, they made some moves that could backfire, but lucky to win 90? In this division?

Oil Can Boyd Return

davidalanu — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 22:10:46 -0000

Oil Can Boyd Return

Call me strange, but i love these stories. Hopefully somebody gives him a shot in ST