SB Nation User Blog: satyanaas

"Say No to Johan"

satyanaas — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:33:10 -0000

An interesting article over at Slate discusses the Yankees and Red Sox's passing on Santana. According to the article at least, there was a lot of fan opposition to spending a lot of money on a big name free-agent. The article goes on to discuss the rising trend of more knowledgeable fans (who know about VORP) and valuing cultivation of home-grown talent/prospects vs. free-agent signings. Basically, stuff you guys are always going on about. ; )

Say No to Johan:
Why Red Sox and Yankee fans are happy they won't be rooting for the best pitcher in baseball.

Saarloos dfa

satyanaas — Mon, 28 May 2007 15:28:08 -0000

Jsut noticed this on C.Trent's Site:

Saarloos dfa
'They need answers, but I don't feel like I'm the problem. I had three bad innings in 20 appearances. I don't think I'm the problem'

I know he's coming of an absolutely horrible start but a DFA seems a little hasty to me. Doesn't he have options? Looks like its going to open a well deserved door for Livingston. Maybe it will shake things up.

Update [2007-5-28 11:33:2 by satyanaas]: Rosecrans updated his blog. I thought they released Saarloos. Just sent him down to Louisville. I'm cool with that. Maybe he can work on getting a first inning out down there and comeback and help us in the bullpen when we release Stanton.

Hamilton Day to Day

satyanaas — Sat, 19 May 2007 18:29:58 -0000

From C. Trent:

At approximately 5:45 this morning Reds OF Josh Hamilton was taken by ambulance to Lutheran Hospital in Cleveland, where he was diagnosed with gastroenteritis, a general term referring to the inflammation or infection of the gastrointestinal tract.
He has returned to the team hotel, where he is resting. He is day-to-day.

Too bad. Besides there being a LH pitcher, I guess that explains part of the reason he didn't play yesterday. Hopefully its just one of those things that just sounds serious that he can recover quickly from.

Freel on Hamilton

satyanaas — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 22:27:22 -0000

A statement by Freel on Josh Hamilton from C. Trent:

"Whatever it may be. I don't know if it's the advantage or disadvantage of being a utility guy. The disadvantage, I know when I was playing second base and Phillips came over here and started hot, he eventually ended up getting that position. He's just a utility player. The next year I'm going to be playing center field and you've got a guy who can flat-out play. He's a stud. There's no question about it. He's a fist pick for a reason. What he did in spring, the kid can hit. He hit .400 in the spring, I don't care who you are, you hit .400 in the spring and play every day like he did, that shows a lot about your talent. I'll be the first one to tell you, I can't hit 20-25 home runs, I'm not going to get you 100 RBIs, this guy can. I know there are a lot of eyebrows raised about him playing, I'll be the first to tell you, this guy needs to play. He's that kind of a player. He can flat-out play. He's a five-tool player. I know he's gone through some off-the field problems, I know how focused he is now and his faith in God and what he's done to get where he's at, and now his talent has taken over. He's going to be an All-Star, that's what kind of player he is. Whether I am or not, I can't tell you, but he is. If they want to move me back to the infield here and there, the last few days I've been getting ready for that. Jerry hasn't said anything to me about it, but I can read between the lines. I know you have to have a guy like that in the lineup. He's one of the better athletes I've ever seen. The sky's the limit for him. I'll put myself aside any day, any time in order for us to win a championship. Regardless of what he's done, or what he's being paid or whatever, he's a guy who can play everyday and he's going to put up big numbers if you stick with him. I don't have any problem with that - especially now. I just want to win. He's a game-changer, one swing of the bat, he can change the game. I'm not that kind of player, I'm the type of guy who needs to get on base, steal some bags, I'm not going to hit 30 home runs. I'm not going to do it."

Pretty cool that Freel is willing to move around to accomodate some ABs for Hobbs. Hope management was listening.

Watchin' OD in NYC?

satyanaas — Mon, 02 Apr 2007 02:59:30 -0000

Anyone by chance know of a hip spot in Brooklyn or Manhattan (that's not ESPNzone) to watch the game tommorow? I am sadly without a television. I'm not even sure who's carrying the game over here in Yankeeland, but if any knows or is even watching it somewhere I'd be interested. I got the day off.

Go Reds! Go Bucks!
(JD, feel free to delete this diary tomorrow night)

Opening Day Order and Rotation

satyanaas — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 18:56:17 -0000

According to Reds.com:

BATTING ORDER

1. Ryan Freel, CF:
His status as an everyday player without an everyday spot is over. Now the regular center fielder, Freel has 36 or more steals each of the past three seasons and is expected to remain a catalyst at the top.

2. Adam Dunn, LF:
Dunn hit 40 homers for the third straight season in 2006, but led the Majors with 194 strikeouts and was poor in the second half. Working with new hitting coach Brook Jacoby during spring seems to have paid off. Dunn has renewed dedication and has been hitting to all fields instead of just pulling the ball.

3. Brandon Phillips, 2B:
Phillips is coming off a breakout season, in which he had 17 homers and 75 RBIs. Reds manager Jerry Narron liked his plate discipline this spring and believes Phillips can produce from the three-hole.

4. Ken Griffey Jr., RF:
In a new position after 18 seasons in center field, Griffey didn't debut in spring until March 24, because he was slow to recover from a broken left hand suffered in December. It will be interesting to see if less than a week's worth of at-bats were enough to get the 37-year-old ready for the regular season.

5. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B:
For a young hitter, the 24-year-old is skilled at getting on base and also producing in run-scoring situations. After Encarnacion committed a team-high 25 errors last season, he'll have to make some improvement with his decision-making and throwing.

6. Scott Hatteberg, 1B:
One of the few hitters in this lineup not prone to striking out (he was the sixth hardest batter to strikeout in the National League in 2006, with one strikeout per 13.1 plate appearances), Hatteberg can be counted on for hits the other way, moving runs or taking a walk.

7. Alex Gonzalez, SS:
A free agent signed for his superior glove skills, Gonzalez and his .292 on-base percentage could be a lineup liability. But he has a little pop in his bat (23 homers in 2004 with Florida) that could benefit from Great American Ball Park. Gonzalez and Phillips could form an electric duo in the middle infield.

8. David Ross, C:
A late Spring Training acquisition last year, Ross had a breakout 2006 with a career-high 21 homers and earned a two-year contract and an everyday job. Now he needs to be more consistent. Ross batted .311 in the first half last season and .203 after the All-Star break.

opening day 2007

ROTATION

1. Aaron Harang, RHP:
Underrated, despite being a 16-game winner who led the NL with 216 strikeouts and six complete games in 2006, Harang can change that by doing it again. Rewarded with a four-year, $36.5 million contract, he did not have a very effective spring but wasn't worried it would carry into the season.

2. Bronson Arroyo, RHP:
Arroyo welcomed himself back to the NL with his first All-Star appearance and led the Majors with 240 2/3 innings last season. It earned him a valuable contract extension that takes him through the next four seasons. The Reds were 21-14 in Arroyo's starts last year.

3. Eric Milton, LHP:
Signed to a three-year, $25.5 million free agent deal before 2005, Milton has one more season to do something positive for Cincinnati. An injury-riddled 2006 kept him from being consistent, again.

4. Kyle Lohse, RHP:
Poised for his first full season with the Reds, Lohse is trying to get back to the consistency that made him a 14-game winner with 201 innings in 2003 with Minnesota. The club remains in love with the right-hander's stuff, and a strong season would be a nice boost.

5. Matt Belisle, RHP:
A spectacular spring earned Belisle a starter's job after he worked out of the bullpen last season.

Paul Wilson?

satyanaas — Wed, 28 Feb 2007 16:15:04 -0000

From Mark Sheldon on Reds.com:

"It's early, but right now, Wilson's looking pretty darn good. We were remiss to not include his name on last week's poll about fifth starter candidates. He definitely has a shot. Shoulder and elbow surgeries over the years, including the major shoulder operation in June 2005 that he's trying make a comeback from, robbed Wilson off his above-90 mph velocity. But observers this spring have been impressed with his ability to locate and the quality of his sinker pitch.

Wilson has a tremendous work ethic and is a favorite of many in the clubhouse. If he's healthy and has a good run during the exhibition games, in my mind he's got to be a favorite for the fifth spot. If not, a role in the bullpen is always an option.

---

I was surprised to read this. He seems to really thinks Wilson could be in the mix for a starter spot. I thought Wilson was pretty much done. It would be really nice just to have him in the bullpen. It would be a helluva comeback, but I wonder how optimistic this is?

A Little Milestone Poll

satyanaas — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 16:35:36 -0000

Slyde's post got me interested in the general optimism/pessimism towards Griffey's 2007 season right now. I'm hoping, like many of you, that he does himself (and the team) a favor and takes a little bit of pressure and wear and tear off himself and makes the move to RF. But, regardless, I think he still has at least one 40 HR season left in him. So I think he's going to tease the 600 HR mark this season. For once, I think its going to refreshing to be able to root for somebody hitting a HR milestone that doesn't warrant an "*". (besides Juan Castro chasing 40 of course).

Poll

In 2007, Griffey will

hit over 37 and join the 600 Club!

17 votes

Hit over 30 but not 37 HRs.

13 votes

hit over 20-30 HR.

18 votes

hit 10-20 HRs.

3 votes

be out slugged by Juan Castro.

1 votes

52 votes | Poll has closed

Kim Ng

satyanaas — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 04:49:23 -0000

I came across this in Newsweek and thought it might be of interest to those of you that are not Keith Hernandez:

Kim Ng
She knows her baseball and is in line to become the sport's first female GM.

By David A. Kaplan
Newsweek

Dec. 25, 2006 - Jan. 1, 2007 issue - Walking around Major League Baseball's recent winter meetings in Florida, Kim Ng might just as well have been one of the boys. While she may be the most prominent woman in the 30 executive offices of baseball's various teams, her colleagues no longer notice the novelty. They just know the 38-year-old assistant general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers knows her baseball stuff—from negotiating player salaries in the back rooms to assessing talent on the field. Last year she interviewed for the top Dodgers job, but finished as a runner-up. The opportunity to run a baseball team doesn't happen often—GM vacancies are rare. But when the next one occurs, or perhaps the one after that, she's in the best position to become the first female GM in a major U.S. sport—as well as an Asian-American pioneer. "What impresses me about Kim is she's able to work in an environment where she's basically the only one," says Omar Minaya, general manager of the New York Mets and the game's first Hispanic GM. "She's as tough as anybody."

The oldest of five girls, Ng was raised in Queens, N.Y. As a city kid, she distinguished herself as a stickball player on the corner of 173rd Street and 65th Avenue and then as an MVP infielder on the University of Chicago's softball team. She majored in public policy, yet wanted a job in baseball. She got an internship with the Chicago White Sox, becoming a wizard at salary arbitrations. She landed with the New York Yankees and then left for L.A. Her most glaring moment in the sun happened in 2003 when a Mets executive mocked her Chinese background in front of other MLB execs; he was fired, and she was put in the position of becoming a standard-bearer against discrimination. "I was thinking, 'Listen, boys, this is what I deal with all the time'," Ng recalls. "I didn't want it to become a big deal."

She's similarly ambivalent about gender's making her stand out. She knows the feeling: it used to be at baseball meetings that heads would turn as if to ask, "Who is she?" So Ng recognizes that a team might consider her as GM in part because she's a woman. But she's also ambitious and thinks she's worthy of consideration, regardless of what's motivating a team. "There are downsides of people having preconceived notions, but there are also the positives," she says. "You have every right to use that." Sounds like she's a pretty skilled negotiator indeed.

Link to Article:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16240584/site/newsweek/

Free Agency Follies: Why are baseball GMs making so many stupid deals?

satyanaas — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 21:41:27 -0000

From Slate.com:

"In 2002, Red Sox owner John Henry and GM-to-be Theo Epstein half-jokingly pleaded with Michael Lewis to ditch a book he was working on. Lewis' tome would detail the stubborn inanity of baseball executives who relied on the often-incorrect wisdom of lifelong baseball insiders. Henry and Epstein told Lewis that if he laid bare the advantages of teams that sought out market inefficiencies when gauging players' worth, those advantages would evaporate. But as this offseason has once again demonstrated, the Red Sox execs had no reason to worry about Moneyball. There are just as many mind-bogglingly stupid deals as ever."

Full article at: http://www.slate.com/id/2154944/?nav=ais