Monday January 12, 2004
 

OTHER BASEBALL NOTES

BASKETBALL THOUGHTS

PETE ROSE MAILBAG

NFL “EXPERT” PLAYOFF PICKS

REALITY TV UPDATE

Vlad Signed Angelic Contract

First, he was heading to the Yankees. Next, he was maybe going back to the Expos. Then, it became apparent that he was going to sign with the Baltimore Orioles. Then the Mets made their 3 year offer full of incentives. However, it was felt that he really wanted to go play down in Florida.

Then Saturday night, we find out that the best available free agent in baseball, Vladmir Guerrero, was on the verge of signing with the Anaheim Angels. Sunday, it happened. Guerrero signed a five-year, $70 million contract to become the right fielder of the Angels (of course, it is pending his passing a physical).

Where did that come from? I was stunned to hear the news. I assumed after signing pitchers Kelvim Escobar and Bartolo Colon and outfielder Jose Guillen filled out their outfield, the Angels were done making moves. Their pitching staff was set and strong one through five. Their outfield was now set and Garrett Anderson could stay in LF.

If nothing else, Twins fans can take one thing from this signing. What’s that, you ask? We need an owner like Arte Moreno. He bought the Angels last summer. What was his first decision as Angels’ owner? He reduced the price of beer by over 50%. He also reduced some ticket prices. And now, he is making some moves that make the Angels, just over a year from winning the World Series, a contender again in the AL West.

So, first, how does this affect the Angels? Well, here is their probable lineup:

SS - David Eckstein

1B - Darin Erstad

RF - Vlad Guerrero

CF - Garrett Anderson

LF - Jose Guillen

3B - Troy Glaus

DH - Tim Salmon

C  - Bengie Molina

2B - Adam Kennedy

That is a lineup that is going to score a lot of runs! As you can see, the Guerrero signing moves Guillen to LF, Anderson to CF and Erstad to 1B. One  side-benefit of this move is that Erstad can move back to 1B. He is an amazing, Gold Glove center fielder. However, his energy and hustle actually got him injured so much in the past that maybe staying in the infield will keep him healthy and in the lineup. Hopefully he can return to his all-star level!

But, just take another quick look at hitters three through seven… Power hitters, but at least 3-5, you’ve got good average hitters too. Maybe Troy Glaus will come back, be healthy and return to his 40+ home run days. If all this comes together, the Angels could be an offensive machine.

Now, it also takes pitching to win. Here is the probable Angels starting rotation at this point:

1 - Bartolo Colon

2 - Ramon Ortiz

3 - Jarrod Washburn

4 - Kelvim Escobar

5 - John Lackey

Colon can eat up a lot of innings and throw hard for 9 innings. Ramon Ortiz has been solid for quite some time. Jarrod Washburn isn’t dominant, but can eat up innings and get a lot of wins with this team. Escobar has gone from reliever, to closer, to starter and back and forth and all around in his years with Toronto. The question is how will he fare with a full season in the rotation. That’s a fair question, but he was strong last year and records a lot of strikeouts. I think he’ll be fine. And, John Lackey was the starter (and winner) in Game 7 for the Angels in the 2002 World Series. He hasn’t lived up to the hype which that game caused, but he can be very good, especially as a fifth starter. So, aside from Colon, there isn’t an “ace” on the staff, but four other very quality starters.

And, the Angels already had one of the best bullpens in the big leagues:

Closer - Troy Percival

RHP - Brendan Donnelly

RHP - Francisco Rodriguez

RHP - Ben Weber

RHP - Scot Shields

Question Mark - Well, with the big moves this offseason, the Angels’ salary level is near $100 million for 2004. There are rumors that any of a number of players could be traded. Troy Percival, Ramon Ortiz and Jarrod Washburn top the rumor list.

Twins perspective - Well, first, I think that the Twins should see what it would take to bring any of the three to Minnesota. They certainly have no interest in Jacque Jones any more, so the Twins would likely have to give up some prospects and take on salary to acquire any of them. I don’t see the Twins doing that.

Secondly, I wonder if, in retrospect, had the Twins known how little Guerrero would sign for, would they have considered making a play for him, rather than Shannon Stewart? I dreamed of Guerrero in a Twins uniform as soon as he became a free agent. He would be the kind of player that would put the Twins over the top.

Orioles perspective - I think that the O’s administration just assumed that they had Guerrero in their hands. To see him spurn their offers and sign with the Angels has to sting. They were successful in signing free agent SS Miguel Tejada and C Javy Lopez this offseason, so all is not lost! However, what I now expect from Baltimore is some panic, making moves that typify free agency for the Orioles the last decade. Yesterday, they signed DH Rafael Palmiero to a 1 year-$4 million deal, bringing him back to Baltimore where he spent 5 seasons in the mid-90s. Oh, and they signed OF/DH BJ Surhoff to a minor league contract. (WHY?)

So now what? There are rumors that they may again try to sign C Ivan Rodriguez again, and have he and Lopez split time catching and at DH. (HUH?) They will probably hit the free agent pitchers next and will offer too much to Greg Maddux and/or Sidney Ponson. That said, losing out on Guerrero means that they could have $12-15 million available to them. I certainly would focus on pitching, and Maddux would definitely be a good start, if they can get him for $10 million or less. I think Ponson is incredibly over-rated, so if anyone gives him more than $5 million a year, it is far too much.

A’s perspective - They lost Tejada already, but he will be replaced by Bobby Crosby. They lost Keith Foulke, but replaced him with Arthur Rhodes. They have a better offensive outfield. They aren’t a great offensive team at all. BUT… they still have the starting rotation of Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Barry Zito, Mark Redman and Rich Harden, with Justin Duchsherer ready if needed. That alone helps them contend in the AL West. They have added other players to their bullpen as well. So, I’m sure there is concern in Oakland, but they are just fine.

Mariners perspective - Their starting rotation is nothing to write home about. Their bullpen should still be good. Their offense will be good, but no where near as strong as the Angels. If you’re looking for a team with some high expectations to falter, look no further than the Seattle Mariners. The Rich Aurilia signing was good, but unless he regains his old form (and in the pitcher-friendly Safeco Field it isn’t likely), it won’t help the Mariners win more games. 

Player’s Association perspective - Vlad Guerrero signing for 5 years and $70 million has to have members of the Player’s Association crying ‘Collusion’, and I can’t help but agree with that line of thinking. That is ridiculously low for the talent level and youth of Guerrero. Sure, his back injury could have brought the number of years down, but the Angels are getting a great deal. Don’t be surprised if the Union has some thoughts on this contract in the coming days and weeks.

Any thoughts on the Guerrero signing or how it alters the scope of the American League, please e-mail me.
 

OTHER BASEBALL NOTES

Last Thursday, I provided a link to MLB Center’s interview with Dr. Mike Marshall. Avkash Patel who writes a great site called The Raindrops e-mailed me with another great Mike Marshall interview. It is actually a two part interview, so here is Part 1, and here is Part 2.

Twins fans will be excited to hear that The Great Denny Hocking signed a minor league deal with the Colorado Rockies. Ho Hum, right? Absolutely! Until you think of it like this… Denny Hocking may have a chance to start for the Rockies. WHAT? Yeah, really. The Rockies have the following players as their possible starting shortstop and second baseman; Clint Barmes, Aaron Miles, Royce Clayton, Damion Jackson and Benji Gil. Do any of those names strike you as being better than Denny Hocking?

Clint Barmes made his big league debut in 2003 with 25 late-season at bats. He hit .320 with a couple of doubles. He is 24 years old. Aaron Miles got 12 at bats last year for the White Sox. He was 4-12 with 3 doubles. He’s not really a young guy either at 27. Royce Clayton is probably more of a name, because somehow the 33-year old SS has been a major league starter for 10 seasons. Last year in Milwaukee, he hit .228/.301/.368 with 11 homers and 39 RBI. Maybe Rockies officials assume that Clayton can add to such power numbers in the light air of Denver. Actually, at a minor league contract, it’s probably fair. Clayton’s career OPS+ is 78. Damian Jackson was essentially a pinch-runner and late-inning defensive replacement for Todd Walker last year in Boston. The 30 year old Jackson has played in parts of 8 big league seasons for a number of teams. Jackson’s career OPS+ is 81. Benji Gil has really never been a starter. The former #1 pick of the Rangers was brought up to Texas too quickly (as a 20 year old SS from Class A) and he struggled immensely. He was really never given another fair shot at the starting job. He has spent the past four seasons in Anaheim playing some 1B and some 2B, but not playing a lot. A career .237 hitter, Gil hit just .192 last year in 125 at bats (62 games). Gil’s career OPS+? 65.

What about Mr. Hocking? Well, the 33 year old has played in parts of 11 seasons for the Twins. Last year, he played in just 83 games, his least since 1996. On his career, he has hit .252/.310/.351 with 25 home runs and 215 RBI. His career OPS+ is 70. Defensively is where Hocking does his work though. In his career, he has played 271 games at SS and 266 at 2B, another 118 at 3B, 97 in RF, 65 in LF, 45 at 1B, and 43 in CF. In other words, I don’t suspect that Hocking will have any probably making the Rockies roster. His versatility is beyond any other player in the major leagues.

Will he be given a shot as a starter in Colorado? I would think ‘probably not’. My guess (and that’s all it is) is that Clayton and Barmes will compete for the starting SS job. If Barmes wins, Clayton would probably just be released. If Clayton wins, he’s the starting SS and Barmes heads back to AAA. As far as 2B, I would think that Aaron Miles will be given every shot to win that position. If he doesn’t, I would suspect Hocking could be a viable option. Otherwise, I would assume that the Rockies would go with Hocking and Gil as their two versatile utility players.

I’ve never spent this much time thinking about Denny Hocking. Gladly, I don’t think I ever will again. He has been very valuable (in a team sense, not in an MVP voting sense) player and leader for the Twins for a long time. I think that he will be missed by some (definitely not all). With the looming probability that the Twins utility infielders will be Nick Punto and Augie Ojeda, Twins fans may find themselves missing Denny!

Any thoughts? E-mail me.
 

BASKETBALL THOUGHTS

The Timberwolves beat the Heat at Target Center Saturday night 83-77. It was a tough, rugged win for the team. Kevin Garnett led the team with 28 points, 17 rebounds and 6 assists.

The will be a tough week for the Wolves, who are now 24-11. Tuesday night, they will play at New Orleans (22-15). Wednesday night, they will play at San Antonio (26-11) in a game matching the top two teams in the Midwest Division. Saturday afternoon, the Wolves will be playing in Houston against the Rockets (20-15).

Now for some incredibly sad news. Yinka Dare is probably best known for not passing the ball much. Friday, he passed away with a heart attack due to an arrhythmia condition. Dare was just 32 years old.

Dare was born in 1972 in Kano, Nigeria. He grew up and attended high school at Milford Academy in Connecticut and then went college at George Washington. After a stellar four years there, in 1994, Dare was the first round pick (14^th overall) by the New Jersey Nets. However, he was certainly classified as a “project.”

His rookie season was marred with injury and development. He played just 3 minutes in 1 game. His second year, he played in 58 games, averaging just 11 minutes. That proved to be his best season as he averaged 2.8 points and 3.1 rebounds. He still had 0 assists. He finally got an assist (3 actually!) in his third season, however his playing time dropped to about 7.6 minutes a game. Finally, in his fourth and final season, the team had clearly given up on him and he played just 10 games.

So, for his career, Yinka Dare played in 110 games (in 4 seasons) and averaged 2.1 points, 2.6 rebounds. He had 70 blocked shots and had 4 assists.
 

PETE ROSE MAILBAG

I shared some of my thoughts on Pete Rose last week. Some of you took the time to e-mail me their thoughts, so here are a couple of different looks at the situation:

From Leslie:

I want to email you about Pete Rose since it has been a topic in the papers around the country, magazines, and on sports radio. He should be in the HOF now that he admitted that he gambled. I am all for him in the Hall. Why not? We have wife beaters, criminals, racists, steroid users, drug-dealers, and drunk drivers in the Hall of Fame so why should a guy that gambled not be in the Hall. Isn't beating the player's wife, cheating, or being a punk is ruining the integrity of the game? Pete has a problem, but that should no way diminish what he has done on the field.
I am so sick and tired of columnists, sports-talk radio hosts, and Pete Rose critics bashing Pete for what he did. They should get off their high-horse and let Pete be who he is.
As for Pete's book, count me out in buying his book. I have no interest in hearing what he has to say or anything. I understand this is just a play for him to make more money and get in the HOF. I sure will watch the interview on Primetime Live tonight on ABC.
If there is something that is disappointing about Pete, it's that he lied for 14 straight years not to mention he told the truth by writing a book and making a profit out of it. Then he had the gall to upstage Dennis Eckersley's day and Paul Molitor's day in the sun by having his book come out and admitting his wrong. If the writers and the veterans committee or Bud Selig don't reinstate him for that reason, well then Pete made his own bed.
With that said, I think Pete should go to the Hall, but that's it. He should have nothing to do with baseball and no baseball team should hire him in any capacity.

From Kirk:

hey man--wanted to weigh in with my pete rose views (like everyone else in the known universe). i hate him. i hate the writers that think that an apology is good enough. i liked one comment i read that said "does he belong in the hall of fame? yes. does he deserve it? no." my feeling on the hall is this though: it should be a shrine to the history of the game as it occurred on the field. i think he belongs in the hall, but i firmly believe he should never be allowed to participate in anything associated with the major leagues. i don't even want him getting into a park as a spectator. the lifetime ban from baseball should stand. a ban from the hall should not.

i read peter gammons' comments and i think he's right about the problem with putting rose in the hall--he would profit from the game that he has clearly used for his twisted purposes. that's not cool. i think you once mentioned something about him being put in posthumously. i think i like that, simply because it would solve the problem mentioned in that quote above. his feats in the game would be recorded in their rightful place, but he would never be able to say that he was a hall of famer.

what a piece of crap.

by the way, regardless of what happens with him, i think that shoeless joe jackson should be in the HOF regardless. again, i want his historical feats to be recognized in baseball's best museum.
 

NFL “EXPERT” PLAYOFF PICKS AND SUMMARIES

OK, there is a reason that the word ‘Expert’ is in quotations. This week, I would be the epitome of the reason for that. As I was receiving the picks from our panelists and entering them in, I noticed that Mike Brasel and I picked differently in all four games this weekend. Take a look quick and see how well that went for us:

Carolina 29, St. Louis 23 in Double-OT - Carolina really dominated the game. They didn’t make many mistakes. The Rams couldn’t get in the end zone. Until the end of regulation. For some reason, Mike Martz ran four plays in the final 2:30 of the fourth quarter. That made no sense. The Rams didn’t even try for a winning touchdown. It came back to haunt them as Jake Delhomme found Steve Smith for a long TD catch that ended the Rams season.

New England 17, Tennessee 14 - No one can question the heart of Eddie George or Steve McNair. Both playing with clear pain performed admirably. The Patriots have no one, but somehow they just keep winning. They do play a solid defense. Tom Brady doesn’t make mistakes. I don’t understand it, but the Patriots are tough.

Indianapolis 38, Kansas City 31 - The Chiefs offense was great! The Colts offense was unstoppable. That may have had as much to do with the pathetic Chiefs defense, but Peyton Manning made all the right reads, Edgerrin James ran hard and the receiving group of Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne and Brandon Stokely were all impressive. That Colt offense is amazing right now!

Philadelphia 20, Green Bay 17 - The Packers got off to a fast start, leading 14-3 after the first quarter. Slowly, the Eagles worked their way back into the game. Donovan McNabb ran for over 100 yards and made some great passes. The big play, of course, was the 4^th and 26 pass from McNabb to Freddie Mitchell for the first down. They went down the field and David Akers kicked a field goal to tie the game and send it to overtime. In overtime, Brett Favre, the greatest QB of all-time, threw a crazy, inexcusable interception. The Eagles worked their way down the field again, and Akers kicked the game winning field goal.

So, next week we’ve got the Conference Championship games:

Carolina @ Philadelphia - Sunday at 5:45 p.m. on FOX

Indianapolis @ New England - Sunday at 2 p.m. on CBS
 

Reality TV Update

Last week, I also presented a schedule of upcoming Reality TV shows, when they’re on and what network. There are a couple more that I don’t want to leave out.

First, I neglected to mention Nick & Jessica’s Newlyweds. Their second season will premiere Wednesday, Jan. 21, at 9 p.m. on MTV.

In a similar ‘real life’ show, Carmen Electra and Dave Navarro will allow cameras into their lives in a new show called Til Death Do Us Part: Carmen and Dave. I think that their lives could be a little more edgy and risqué than Nick and Jessica!

And, one final note. Last night, The WB introduced us to this season’s case of The Surreal Life. What a strange cast of characters. It is a group of six celebrities living together. Here is this season’s cast, in order that they were picked up. Porn Star Ron Jeremy. Televangelist Tammy Faye Messner (formerly Bakker). Just from those two, you can see how interesting this show can be! Trishelle from The Real World: Las Vegas. Erik Estrada, Ponch from CHiPs. Rob Van Winkle, better known as Vanilla Ice. And finally, former Baywatch Babe, Tracy Bingham.

Well, on that note, I’m going to call it a day! I hope everyone had a great weekend! If you have any questions or comments on anything you’ve read, send me an e-mail! Have a great week!

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