Tuesday January 6, 2004
NEW HALL OF FAMERS??
Big News will come out early this afternoon when baseball will announce its new inductees into its Hall of Fame. Will Paul Molitor get in? Will Dennis Eckersley get in? Will there be a third member? How will the relievers finish? Can Bert Blyleven continue to gain ground on the necessary 75% number? Please review my two part Hall of Fame voting postings from a month ago. Part 1 is this year’s first time class. Part 2 covers players who have returned to the ballot this year. To summarize, my vote went to Bert Blyleven, Paul Molitor, Dennis Eckersley, Goose Gossage and Lee Smith. Following writing those postings, I received some great e-mails and I think that Ryne Sandberg should also be voted for.
Of course, the other “big news” in the baseball world is the new book by Pete Rose entitled My Prison Without Walls. I have numerous thoughts on his admission of betting on baseball, including Reds games, but it is being covered by pretty much every form of media, including many of the blogs to the left of the screen, so I do encourage you to take a look at some of them. Here are just some of my thoughts:
1.) It took him 14 years to admit lying. 14 years! Are we seriously going to just say that everything is ok, that everything is forgotten, because he is telling the truth now? I hope not!
2.) Is he even telling the complete full truth at this time? How do we know? Is everything included in the book?
3.) Pete Rose wants us to forgive him for this. Well, to my knowledge, he hasn’t exactly apologized yet, has he? I haven’t heard the words “I’m sorry!” uttered by Pete Rose. Who does he need to apologize to? Well, start with Jim Dowd, Fay Vincent and others that he lied to. Then continue to all the Reds fans and baseball fans who actually care about the integrity of the game. And then to all of the players who came before him or have played since then.
4.) It is a convenient time for Pete Rose to admit this, isn’t it? Hmmm… it will help him sell books, hence, making a lot more money.
5.) His book is coming out the same week as the Hall of Fame announcement. Pete Rose is taking the spotlight away from those who really deserve it, like Paul Molitor, Dennis Eckersley, Ryne Sandberg, Bert Blyleven and the other players who could be voted into the Hall of Fame today.
6.) One thing I hear a lot is that, as long as he didn’t bet against his own Reds teams, it really isn’t that bad. I think that ESPN’s Jayson Stark answers that question perfectly:
He speaks of how he never bet against his own team, and how he never placed a bet from the clubhouse, and how he never used "inside" information, and how he would never, ever fix a game -- no matter how much money he could have made.
But we're still waiting for some recognition that he now understands that a manager who gambles -- even on his own team to win -- is just as dangerous to his sport as a manager who bets on his team to lose.
Remember, if a manager has a couple of thousand bucks riding on any given game, his perspective on everything changes.
Is he really caring about what's best for his team, over the long haul, that night? Does it matter that if he's already used his closer three nights in a row and probably ought to give him a break? Can he really afford to give his cleanup man the night off the day after he's tweaked a hamstring?
Heck, no. All he sees are the dollar signs at stake in that game. Which raises a million questions about everything that goes on.
But there are no signs, in either the book or Gibson excerpts available so far, that Pete Rose understands that side of his gambling "problem." And that's a major red flag.
These are just some of my thoughts. As I’ve mentioned before, I think that the whole Pete Rose saga has been overplayed, especially this week when far more deserving baseball greats deserve our attention.
To summarize my thoughts on the situation, well, ESPN asked a poll question today that asked If Pete Rose is reinstated into baseball, should he be in the Hall of Fame??? Of course, if he’s eligible for the Hall, he should get serious consideration. Will he get into the Hall? I don’t know. I don’t think that I would vote for him, but if reinstated, he should be on the ballot. However, I think the proper question would have been “Should Pete Rose be reinstated into baseball?” To that question, I unequivocally say No. Coming clean, so to speak, doesn’t change that in the least.
Also, who is going to be dumb enough to hire Rose as a manager? Well, many people think that Carl Lindner, the owner of the Cincinnati Reds would want him to manage the Reds. OK, we’ve seen the direction of the Reds the last few years, so maybe it shouldn’t surprise us!
One final thought - If he is reinstated, Joe Jackson and the others involved in the Black Sox scandal of 1919 should also be reinstated immediately.
Any thoughts? Send me an e-mail.
In a sad story, Tug McGraw finally succumbed to his long battle with cancer yesterday. He passed away at the age of 59 in Tennessee.
McGraw spent the first nine seasons of his big league career with the New York Mets. Actually, if you just look at his first three seasons, he did a lot of starting. His combined record in that time was 4-19. But that first year, he was 2-7, but had an ERA of 3.32. But those were some pretty bad Mets teams! After then spending the 1968 season in the minors, McGraw came back and went 9-3 for the Miracle Mets of 1969. His Mets returned to the playoffs in 1973, getting to, but losing in the World Series to the A’s. 1975 was his first year with the Philadelphia Phillies where his career really took off. He was part of playoff teams in 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980 (World Champs) and 1981. In his 10 seasons with the Phillies, he had an ERA under 3.00 five times, and under 4.00 eight times. For his career, he was 96-92 with an ERA of 3.14 (compared to the league average of 3.65). An intense, dominant and intimidating southpaw, Tug McGraw was as much a part of those great Phillies team as the likes of Mike Schmidt and the aforementioned Pete Rose.
He now is probably most well-known for being the father of country music star, Tim McGraw.
The Minors First is a site that does a great job discussing minor league prospects. This week, they came out with their The Minors First Top 100 Baseball Prospects list for 2004. Here is a quick look at where Twins rookies fit into the top 100. The Twins got five players on the list, actually all within the top 53. In my Twins prospect rating, I guess I didn’t have Michael Restovich rated as highly as these guys do. The other four though are top prospects on any list.
1. Joe Mauer- C MIN This year my list starts out with Mauer. He combines natural ability with excellent baseball skills to give you everything you look for in a hitter. He'll be a high average hitter who draws walks and will hit homers. Watching Mauer long toss in the outfield, it's very easy to see his great arm strength and he draws raves about the way he handles pitchers. Even with all the good things I've said about Mauer, there's bound to be some bad aspects to any player. In Joe's case it's in his foot speed. We're definitely talking catcher's speed.
9. Justin Morneau- 1B MIN Big-time homerun hitter that should eventually find his way into the middle of the Twins' order. His drop of a few spots (from last year's #4 ranking) is definitely not based on his 2003 performance… he hit 22 homers in not much over half a season in the Minors, before getting called to Minnesota. It's more a statement of how strong the players on this year's list are.
48. Michael Restovich- OF MIN I've always been a fan of his. I like his upside more than even Cuddyer's. If the Twins could overlook his high strikeout totals and give him a shot, I think he could be a very good and exciting player. He's more than just a power hitter.
50. JD Durbin- RHP MIN Minnesota's best pitching prospect, Durbin's stock soared in 2003 as his velocity increased. He's still in the learning process with his changeup and will need it in the Majors. If not, he'd make for a good late inning reliever. He's a fierce competitor on the mound… I guess it's his game-face. I met him and his girlfriend on a day he wasn't pitching and he seems like a very nice young man.
53. Jesse Crain- RHP MIN Back in college, he was a respectable shortstop in addition to being U. of Houston's closer. Now, there's no doubt about his future position… it's in the back end of the Twins' bullpen. There are those that feel Crain has one of the best arms in the Minors. He regularly hits 95 mph and adds a good slider to the mix.
What are your thoughts? Any surprises? E-mail me.
The Twins are doing very little at this point in the season, so all we can do is talk about their players and their minor league system.
Aaron Gleeman is celebrating his 21st birthday in Las Vegas this week and has set up some impressive 'guest columnists' to write each day this week on Aaron's Baseball Blog. Yesterday was the first guest column, and he got a very impressive writer, John Sickels, who writes a column for ESPN.com on minor leaguers as well as having written a number of books. He writes about how he has always been a big Twins fan, and how that occurred, as well as his thoughts on the current Twins roster
Today, Aaron's guest analyst is Ryan Levy who is a student at Texas A&M and writes a blog called Texas A&M and Baseball in No Particular Order. He chronicles the times he saw and played against Marlins pitcher Josh Beckett in high school in Texas. He says he is one of just 30 high school kids who actually got a hit off of Beckett. It is a really interesting read. Be sure to check it out, and I can’t wait to see who tomorrow’s guest analyst will be.
I saw this link regarding what has happened in Iraq since George Bush announced that all major conflict in Iraq was over on May 1. Take the time to read it. I think it is really important.
BIG NBA TRADE (STARBURY TRADED)
There was a big 8-player NBA trade yesterday. Isaiah Thomas orchestrated yet another trade for the Knicks, this one with the Phoenix Suns. Here is how the trade breaks down:
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Knicks Get |
Suns Get |
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Stephon Marbury |
Antonio McDyess |
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Anfernee Hardaway |
Charlie Ward |
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Cezary Trybanski |
Howard Eisley |
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|
Maciej Lampe |
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Milos Vujanic |
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2004 1st Round Pick |
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Conditional 1st Rd Pick |
Is there any doubt that the Knicks got the better of this deal. As a Timberwolves fan, I can’t stand Marbury. However, he is one of the best point guards in the NBA. And, as we all know, this is where Marbury wanted to be all along, with the Knicks, playing at home in Madison Square Garden. Anfernee Hardaway was once one of the best players in the game. Injuries have really hurt him, however, he is still a decent player who can really contribute to the team in a number of roles. The Knicks got Antonio McDyess who three years ago signed a max-contract because he was a 20-10 guy with the Nuggets and Suns in his early years. But he has been hurt the past two seasons and just recently came back to playing. Charlie Ward and Howard Eisley are both serviceable point guards, but certainly nothing worth worrying about and both making way more than they should be. So, the Knicks get rid of three bad contracts in this deal. The lone positives for the Suns are the youngsters they have added from the Knicks. Milos Vujanic was their first round pick. Maciej Lampe was their 2nd round pick, although he could have gone far sooner. They will get two other first round picks in the future. The Suns will also be $8 million under the salary cap next season, which will help them.
Winner of the trade - Now, definitely the Knicks. Rid bad contracts, pick up a great point guard and a good player off the bench to fit in with Allan Houston and Keith Van Horn to form a decent nucleus. In the future, the Knicks will be able to compete in the Eastern Conference, but losing the draft picks could hurt long term. The Suns need to draft wisely as well as use the available money smartly. Did you notice that Leandrinho Barbosa (who many of us thought the Timberwolves should have taken with their first round pick) scored 27 points for the Suns last night in the absence of Marbury? He had been averaging just 8 minutes and 3 points per game.
Any thoughts on this trade? On Marbury? On the NBA or the Wolves? E-mail me.
That is going to have to be it for today! We should be able to post the newly elected Hall of Fame members shortly after the announcement is made (at 1:00 central time today), so feel free to check back. As always, if you have any questions or comments, or any burning questions you would like me to address on this site, please feel free to e-mail me.
Thank you and have a great day!