SB Nation User Blog: nodaclu

HOF-er Dick Williams to Wear A's Cap in Hall

nodaclu — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 03:28:11 -0000

For all of the great players the Oakland A's have had through the past 40 years, most (if not all) have chosen to go into the Hall of Fame wearing the cap of another team.

So it was quite a refreshing change to read this article at Yahoo today:

Hall president Dale Petroskey said Williams will be featured on his Hall plaque with an Athletics hat to acknowledge his achievements as manager there.

Congrats to an A's "great" from a bygone era.

Scutaro traded to Blue Jays

nodaclu — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 18:42:20 -0000

Obviously it was time to move in a different direction, and I know the A's didn't want to pay the big salary increase for him in 2008. But I'll still miss the guy. He truly seemed to be was one of those "clutch" types people like to debate endlessly about.

So is Donnie Murphy the new Scutaro? Or will someone else fill that utility role?

Scutaro traded to Blue Jays

Nothing Major - Just a DL Funny

nodaclu — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 22:21:14 -0000

An article was just posted to the Chron online that discusses Huston Street knowledge of wines (why? who knows?)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...

What I found absolutely hilarious was the beginning of Huston's answer to the following question:

Q: Do the A's drink a lot of wine together?

A: I remember coming here my rookie season. (Bobby) Crosby had just gone on the DL (disabled list)....

Again, no real reason to post this, other then I found it both funny and sad, and thought others might too...

Public Apology to Fadedash...and a Little Fan Philosophy

nodaclu — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 04:40:28 -0000

(I posted this in my last Dan Meyer thread, but it's buried now....and I want to make sure this is read by the party I wronged.)

Been a few days, so this probably won't get read, but it's important to me, so here it is.

I need to apologize for two things. 1) To fadedash for telling him to go to hell. That wasn't right. It's not me or what I'm about. I haven't been myself lately and have been snapping as everyone, but that doesn't excuse it. So I apologize for that. 2) For my original response to fadedash. He called it "snippy". It wasn't meant that way (tone is so hard to convey in text), but after re-reading it a few days later, it definitely read that way.

Others here did a far better job then I did later in the thread of conveying my thoughts. I don't imagine Meyer would be a world-beater if he was called up late in the year. But if the choice is between Komine or Windsor (who look like AAAA guys to me), or Meyer, I give Meyer a shot based purely on the upside he may still yet bring.

I also agree that his velocity needs to be above 85-87 (although the same thing was said about Duke, and he's at least made an 86-88 mph fastball work in a setup role).

I should also point out that I wasn't looking at just one start. I was looking at the fact that he'd made 9 consecutive starts, was reportedly pain-free, and had topped 100 pitches in each of the last 4 (now 5) starts. His WHIP is way too high still. But after the horror of his past 2 seasons, the overall picture, while not completely there yet, is encouraging and on an upward curve.

Last, I'll admit to having difficulty with being criticized, but that wasn't what set me off here. I guess I have a different view of being a fan then most. I tend toward the optimistic - eagerly looking forward to each new game no matter what the current win-loss record is (the first A's season I really remember was the 1979 club that went 54-108). I can't imagine what this place would look like if this team was that bad. The attendance at one of the games I went to that season was 762!!

It just doesn't get any worse then that club, so to me, it's mostly good most of the time. :-)

I just don't get the venom that is spewed here by so many "fans" towards so many players of the team that they supposedly love. Yes, I get frustrated with Chavez too, but I don't rant on about how he "sucks", how he's "worthless" and so forth. I just can't believe that the people who write these things would ever have the courage to say these things to a players face, and if they do....well, then the world's in a whole lot more trouble then I thought. :)

Sooner or later, maybe I'll finally begin to realize that even though I'm only 37, my mind functions in a completely different era - one where common courtesy, decency, and respect reigned supreme. I write as if the person I'm talking about will absolutely read what I'm saying, so I'm mindful to try and be as balanced as I can be, and still respectful even when I'm critical.

Yes, I didn't show much of any of those things toward fadedash in the Meyer diary, so that's why I'm writing this now, to remind myself of what I'm all about, and what I believe in - even if I'm the only man on earth standing on that platform in 2007.

Thanks for listening....
~Mike

Dan Meyer Continuing To Make Strides at Sacto

nodaclu — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 18:19:57 -0000

I've been around here for a long time, but rarely post anymore.

I do however, seem to have a bit of history of being one of Dan Meyer's longest and strongest supporters through his litany of injury woes over the past two seasons, so I figured I would keep bringing up to the forefront as he continues on the comeback trail.

Meyer overpowers but wants staying power

I still have the strangest feeling that this guy is going to be a difference maker as the #5 starter sometime between the All Star Break and August 1st. He's the only starter in AAA with a true upside, and though I'm sure the front office would prefer to bring him along very slowly, I envision a scenario where the A's go into August 3-4 games out and with four solid starters - the temptation may be too much to resist.

Harden Suffers Setback - Shut Down Again

nodaclu — Sat, 19 May 2007 05:41:32 -0000

I suspect we'll hear more about this tomorrow, but this blurb was at the tail end of the Yahoo recap of tonight's game...

A's RHP Rich Harden had another setback in his return from a strained right shoulder when the club shut him down for the weekend. Harden has been on the disabled list since April 16.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/recap?gi...

Sigh.....

Witasick forgot his shoes!?!?

nodaclu — Thu, 10 Aug 2006 00:27:18 -0000

Boy, that was quick. Apparently, the A's made a few roster moves immediately after the game, sending Brad Halsey down to AAA Sacramento.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-athleticsmoves&prov=ap&type=lgns

Have to assume that this is in order to stretch him out for a start or two later in the month.

Incredibly, the same link above talks about Witasick forgetting to bring his shoes to the park, and being forced to wear Duke's shoes, which were a size too small. This caused his feet to go numb.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but, especially being at home, why on earth aren't there any extra shoes in the A's clubhouse?

Did Macha know about this? If he did, why on earth would he send a guy out coming off a "severe" ankle injury in shoes that could ultimately injure him again?

I love this team, but this year, more then any in the past 25 years, they are really driving me nuts!

Hatteberg sign extension with Reds

nodaclu — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 19:30:52 -0000

Our favorite departed Moneyballer has signed an extension with the Reds for 2007, with an option for 2008.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20060726&con tent_id=1576250&vkey=pr_cin&fext=.jsp&c_id=cin

From MLBTradeRumors.com:

The 36 year-old slumped to an awful .256/.334/.343 line for the A's in '05. He signed a free agent deal in February for $750,000 with Cincinnati. This year, Hatteberg has surged to a .324/.417/.505 performance in 275 ABs. He's drawn a walk in an impressive 14% of his plate appearances, 12th in the league.

Hatteberg historically performs worse against southpaws, and Jerry Narron has done well to use him primarily against righties. In the previous three seasons, Hatteberg faced lefties in 28% of his at-bats. This year, he's seen them just 19% of the time.

Happy for Hatty.....sad for us. I know it isn't and wasn't realistic, but I can't help thinking about those numbers, combined with Ethier's, in the A's lineup this season.

:Sigh::

Parallel between Jason Windsor and Dan Meyer?

nodaclu — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 22:10:45 -0000

Bored and digging for nuggets after an off day and before today's game, here's something I found very interesting.

Buried at the bottom of a Chron article on July 16th, discussing Windsor's MLB debut, was this tidbit:

Dan Meyer, a main part of the Tim Hudson trade with Atlanta, had surgery in New York to remove an impediment in his left shoulder...Mets team doctor David Altchek performed the surgery. Meyer probably will be ready to throw in extended spring training

This goes a long way toward explaining Meyer's contuned problems and inflated ERA this season.

Then strangely enough, buried in today's (7/21) CC Times article about Windsor was this:

He (Windsor) had regressed a bit last season (2005), during which he was bothered by a right shoulder impingement, and went 3-6 with a 5.72 ERA in 11 starts at Double-A Midland.

Now, I don't think we can expect Meyer to come back next year and go 12-1 in the minors as Windsor has, but now that they have finally found (and fixed) the problem with Meyer's shoulder, it seems increasingly likely that come Spring Training 2007, we may see the Dan Meyer of 2004 that we originally traded for.

This could definitely bolster, change and alter the scope of what has been looking like a fairly thin rotation for next season.

Thoughts?

Dan Meyer done for the season....again

nodaclu — Sat, 01 Jul 2006 17:31:18 -0000

Well, for the second year in a row, Dan Meyer is hurt, and hurt badly enough that the A's plan to put him on the shelf for the rest of the season...

A blurb from today's Chronicle:

It appears that Sacramento left-hander Dan Meyer, acquired from Atlanta in the Tim Hudson deal after the 2004 season, won't pitch again this season because of continued shoulder trouble. Meyer is scheduled for a second opinion next week, according to assistant GM David Forst, and there are no plans for surgery right now.

Sad really. I feel badly for Meyer. It has to be incredibly frustrating not only for him, but especially for A's brass, as this really complicates the starting rotation picture in the years ahead, and basically means they traded Tim Hudson for Brad Halsey.