Flip: Geoff Baker with an interesting report on Erik Bedard's shoulder.
Chop: We may be getting a bit pollyanna here :- ) and if it turns out that Bedard's shoulder is Top Ramen at this point, fine, I'll cheerfully own up to a mis-read.
Q: Maybe trading Bedard isn't the best thing. If he would take a 3/$27M deal, that might be better.
A: Would agree that trading Bedard isn't the best thing. You got that right, hombre.
One thing, though:
2006 - $18.4m
2007 - $22.2m
2009 - $21.3m (prorated)
Q. His swinging strike rate is down.
A. Are his strikeouts?
The modern trend to get more and more hair-fine about HOW a pitcher gets his strikes is very interesting. But if a guy is getting 9K's a game and guys are swinging less, then they're freezing and locking up more. So what?
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M's with an incredible streak of 8 straight games with >4 runs allowed. This was pointed out by Geoff Baker. What is this, Dodger Stadium 1965? :- )
The 1965 Dodgers had Koufax, Drysdale, Claude Osteen (?) and some other guy in a FOUR-man rotation. Bet you that it wasn't so often that THEY had 8-game runs of perfect pitching. :- ) Maybe somebody wants to go check it out?
Ken Griffey Jr. is another example of the power of the lefty walk in Safeco Field. Absolutely everything that can go wrong has gone wrong for Junior, including his .225 BABIP. He is hitting in the worst-case scenario -- providing the worst offensive season we could have predicted.
And in that worst-case scenario, he is improving the team, because he is its 3rd-best hitter. That is just how important the walk is, in Safeco Field.
Debate still rages over Russell Branyan, whether he has proven that he is legit, and whether he "solves" Safeco Field. Let the debate end.
D-O-V doesn't know whether "solved" is the right characterization :- ) because there is no "solution" to the conditions that Safeco creates...
However, any player who BB's a lot -- that player is going to render field conditions IRRELEVANT (for those plate appearances).
SABRMatt sez,
+++++ Yuniesky Betancourt is getting a great opportunity to watch a far less talented middle infielder take his job. And his reaction? He doesn't show up for batting practice, take ground balls, or listen to his coaches at all...he pouts, makes cheap excuses, and boycotts his own life to get back at the boss for benching him.
You know what we call a guy like that? UNEMPLOYED
Betancourt is about to get his butt sent to A ball...and it's a short hop from there to the waiver wire. +++++
C-Points. :- )
Jack Zduriencik and their team are proven grandmasters of the amateur-draft chess game. I ain't. I ain't even *interested* in amateur players, much less knowledgeable about them.
So this is chat, not analysis, and it's offered in the spirit of a Class-C hack trying to kibitz the play of Yasser Seirawan in the skittles room. Hey, what's a blog for?
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=== QUICK PENNANT, JUST ADD WATER Dept. ===
I believe that he has very little chance of being moved to the bullpen, and for that alone, I am ready to kiss Capt. Jack on the forehead. A #2 draft pick who will make an impact. Vot next?
Capt Jack has, apparently, already ruled him out of the middle infield, despite his college coach's judgment that Ackley would be a "great" second baseman. There are huge advantages, and huge disadvantages, to this.
I study nuclear science
I love my classes
I got a crazy teacher
He wears dark glasses
Things are goin' great
and they're only gettin' better
I'm doin' all right
Gettin' good grades
The future's so bright
I gotta wear shaaaaaades
...................
