SB Nation User Blog: palampe

How much for Manny?

palampe — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:26:45 -0000

Just an academic exercise. Feel free to use numbers or hunches. Commentary from Dayn Perry thinks the Cardinals are missing out on not upgrading the team now.

Link: http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/pgStory?contentId=9225080#sport=MLB&photo=9225064

Of the players out there in free agency limbo, I think Manny Ramirez is the best option for the team. The question is, given realistic payroll limitations, how much would you pay Manny to play in St. Louis? Realistically, I think $30million for one year. I think the ticket sales alone would pay for 1/2 the salary, given that the Cardinals are really pushing for fans in the seats.

(And if not Ramirez, who is avaiable now that could possibly make this team better? Not that there's no room to get better, but do any of the free agents offer significant improvements?_

6 "What If's" to Ponder After a Long, Fun Season

palampe — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 20:59:10 -0000

Ah, the major league baseball season. 162 games long, and just a handful of games make all the difference. I read once that in an MLB season, you can count on losing at least 60 games, count on winning at least 60 games, and it’s what you do with those other 42 that distinguishes a good season from a bad one. At the end of the season, the Cardinals did OK. Like many others, I really can’t complain about the outcome W-L record. Over achieving, especially when you look at the blogs/pundits/columnists predictions back in April, is a wonderful thing.

No, wait. I can complain. Well… maybe it’s not really complaining. Maybe it’s just focusing on the negative long enough to cause a deep feeling of remorse. After all, I am generally a “glass is half empty” sorta guy.

I can’t help look back and wonder, “What if…” In the long, long season, there are many “what if’s,” but I’ve narrowed my list to six “what if’s.” I looked at each month and picked one game that was a) frustrating, b) heart-breaking, c) maddening, or d) all of the above.

Now, I realize this is a completely subjective list, and I understand that “what if’s” run both ways (i.e. “What if the Cardinals lost that game instead of winning it…”), but I thought it was a good way to get a quick and dirty read to see if there was any sort of pattern to what made the 2008 Cardinals a good team and what held them back from being a play-off team.

OK, one game per month. Everybody in the Wayback Machine? Here we go…

April 1: 2-1 loss to the Rockies. This one stung for not only the loss, but because it was a rescheduled game from the washed out home opener. Losing to Kip Wells? That’s an ouchy no Band-Aid can fix. First blown save of the season. I was there for the opening day ceremonies the day before, and saw a highly probable Cardinal win (and an Albert home run) be stricken from the record books due to the weather . Alas, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.

May 9: 4-3 loss to the Brewers. One out away from victory. After getting two outs on two pitches, Isringhausen implodes, allowing two singles and a walk before Rickie Weeks’ two-run single gives Milwaukee a victory and snaps the Brewers’ six-game losing streak.

June 17: 2-1 loss to the Royals. The first game of being swept by Kansas City. At home. Seriously. The entire series was nauseating, but this game set the tone for the next two.

July 12: 11-12 loss to the Pirates. The Cardinals are beaten by the lowly Pittsburgh club – honestly, what made the Pirates so tough that the home team just couldn’t beat these guys when they needed to? St. Louis loses in 10, after being up by 6 runs. Anyone seeing the #1 issue as “bullpen” yet, or is it just me?

August 8: 3-2 loss to the Cubs. Edmunds hits two home runs. Cards lose in 11. The memory of this game could leave someone less mentally stable in a dark corner and rocking on the floor in a fetal position.

September 13: 7-6 loss to the Pirates. Really?!? The Pirates again? I think I just threw up a little in my mouth. Cards loss comes after 11 innings, after they fail to put up any runs past the fourth inning.

That's my list. Feel free to point out other games that could have changed the season. In looking at this completely unscientific sampling of the schedule:

I love TLR and think he’s a baseball genius, but I must disagree with the whole “impact bat” argument. As already shown several times on this site, the Cardinals hit the ball successfully with great frequency this year. OBP was very good. The LOB numbers were high, but then the team was getting on-base so you’d expect more men LOB. The hits would’ve been better if they’d come with RISP, but overall this team was way better than average offensively.

Starting pitching was way, way, way better than anyone could have guessed, especially considering that at the beginning of the season we were thinking (or at least led to believe by the front office propoganda) there might be a Carpenter/Mulder/Clement solution at mid-season. Not to mention Wainwright was out for weeks with a broken whateveritwas in his finger.

Bottom line, the difference in all the games I’ve looked at above is bullpen. Had the Cardinals improved their bullpen at any point in the season, or perhaps upgraded one starter to protect the bullpen with more innings, they might be looking at a Wild Card series today rather than finishing four games out of the phantom division.

But, hey, at least it was exciting and fun. And there's always next year. Go Cards!

How would you fix the All Star Game?

palampe — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:54:57 -0000

Since there isn't a real game to watch over the next few days, I thought I'd throw out this question: How would you fix the All Star Game? I have seen a few ideas, some of which are way, way out of the box. For example: http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/five-all-star-games-in-one/ Personally, the first thing I'd do is open the Home Run Derby to all players, not just the ones on the All Star teams. I mean, where's Ryan Howard last night?!?! He's not my favorite 1B, not the best 1B, but come on! That dude should seriously be in anything called a Home Run anything! Next, I'd create a sort of "All Star Week," freeing up the schedule from Monday - Thursday, with the actual game played on the Wednesday. Monday would be pomp and circumstance and I'd see what could be done to coordinate a Hall of Fame indunction around this time. Tuesday would be media circus day, coordinated with events at every MLB park to include autograph signings, kids run the bases, free showings of a classic movie such as The Natural on the jumboscreens, camping in the outfields, etc. Make All Star week an event in every major league city, not just one. Anyway, just suggestions to kill the time and ponder... Thoughts?

Overuse + Age = 2008 Izzy

palampe — Fri, 16 May 2008 14:31:14 -0000

Quick math to support the idea that Izzy's problem is fatigue: Over his career, he has appeared in an average of 62 per 162 games and appeared in a career high of 74 games in one season (2004) (baseballreferenc.com). With 26% of the 2008 season played, he is being used on a pace to appear in 79 games. Factor in the unqualifiable yet common sense factors of age and known medical history and it plays out that too much has been asked of Izzy this season.

It is reasonable to presume that his performance has been affected by overuse. The Cardinals need another bullpen operative to close games or need to have the starters go deeper into games or score more runs to eliminate save situations in order to have Izzy available and effective (in an ideal world, at least two of those three!). Izzy's epic fall has its root cause in a flawed team that has relied far too much on the arm of one formerly dominant pitcher.