I bet that sign will be a lot more than that--any and every yankee fan wants that one--It may be wrong but I even heard the dang urinals are going for $200--the seats for up to $1000.00.....
well if you want to dump Blalock, Schilling might be available---I think he is making $8mil and hasnt thrown a pitch yet, nor will he BUT he just may be available...Im sure the yankees would love to unload Carl Pavano as well. :)
I wouldnt give up the ship just yet over there, there is still a few weeks til the deadline and anything can happen in the last 50+ games if you are still close...
Blalock has gotta be a good fit somewhere but i dont follow other teams so closely to know who's lookin for someone like him...
We had the Sox AA game on tonight in lieu of the big club-----got my first look at Daniel Bard-young, big kid, incredibly live arm, hasnt got his delivery down yet and has some control issues but throws effortlessly at 98-99 and has a brutal breaking ball
Funny you should mention Bard! Newberg highlighted him this morning... I was going to email this to you but thought 'what the heck' I'll just slap it in here...
Do you guys have something like this in your cities? ...or are we unique? Here it is:
THE NEWBERG REPORT
When Texas takes the field in the bottom of the first tonight, Hank Blalock will be creeping in from the corner, against the possibility of Carlos Gomez
trying to bunt for a hit.
But not from the corner we all expected.
The emergence of Chris Davis (.259/.328/.655) as a power threat and a dependable defender is obviously a factor in the decision the Rangers announced yesterday to return Blalock to third, as is the return to earth of Ramon Vazquez (.257 in July, one extra-base hit), but was there more?
Jon Daniels says that trade value was not a factor. Moving Blalock back to third is clearly meant to give an instant boost to the lineup -- not, apparently, to boost Blalock's value to other teams willing to trade young players for a veteran bat this month.
But a lot can happen in the next 10 days. There are teams on which Blalock can be a fit, including the one in whose park the Rangers arrive today, and even if Daniels isn't giving credence to media suggestions that Blalock is being showcased, if the right offer comes along, I don't think there are more than two or three players on this team who are untouchable.
Blalock is moving back to third because the organization believes it has a better chance of beating Glen Perkins, Livan Hernandez, and Scott Baker in Minnesota this weekend with him in the lineup and not displacing Davis. If Blalock plays healthy, it might prompt a discussion between general managers -- initiated by the Twins -- and we know enough about our GM to know he's going to listen.
As the press tosses this scenario around, you'll hear the name of big lefthander Tyler Robertson, the 20-year-old son of Rangers special assistant Jay Robertson (and the brother of the Rangers' currently unsigned 29th-round pick from last month's draft, high school righthander Charlie Robertson), as a candidate to come this way in any trade. It's no nepotistic speculation. Robertson, among the youngest pitchers in the High A Florida State League, is more than holding his own, sitting at 5-3, 2.72 in 15 starts, with eight strikeouts and three walks per nine innings.
Righthanders Jeff Manship (a 23-year-old starter), Anthony Swarzak (a 22-year-old starter), and Anthony Slama (a 24-year-old reliever) are good names, too, while Deolis Guerra and Kevin Mulvey are probably off-limits in a trade like this one would be.
But what would it take, along with Blalock, to get lefthander Francisco Liriano, who has apparently decided to file a grievance (with the Union's backing) against the Twins for failing to recall him from the minor leagues (where he is 8-0, 2.53 in his last 10 starts), allegedly to prevent him from accruing enough big league service this year to accelerate his arbitration eligibility and qualify this winter as a "Super Two."
Could Texas offer a couple of its best prospects along with Blalock to get Liriano? Doubt it. It stands to reason Minnesota would rather give up prospects to get Adrian Beltre or Casey Blake or Garrett Atkins than to get prospects and have to give up Liriano, in order to get Blalock and the health questions that come with him. Worth checking, though.
Before you yell at me for suggesting that we be "buyers" this month, this is no different from what I've been saying for weeks now: if "buying" means you can go get a guy who could conceivably front your rotation for years to come (the pitching equivalent of acquiring Josh Hamilton), that's when you willingly part with some of the phenomenal depth this club has amassed on the farm. The name I've been keying on this summer is Kansas City's Zack Greinke. Liriano fits as well.
The kind of trade I'm talking about is the one Boston made to get Josh Beckett. Greinke isn't Beckett, and neither is Liriano. But there aren't many young pitchers with big league experience I'd rather have, at least among those who would conceivably be available for the right price.
A quick aside that's not really an aside. You know that I'm as much of a champion of players like Elvis Andrus and Tommy Hunter and Engel Beltre and Martin Perez as anyone. But too often we form attachments to prospects and lose sight of the very strong likelihood that we may not have a Greinke or Liriano in our system. Maybe we do. But we probably don't.
And that's why when the opportunity presents itself to go get someone like that, someone who can step in right away and lead your pitching staff for years, if you ask yourself what the chances are that the prized pitching prospect you're having to part with ever becomes the guy you're getting, if that answer is "doubt it," you have to be willing to act.
Not someone like Victor Zambrano, who cost the Mets Scott Kazmir.
Someone like Greinke or Liriano. If they're even available.
If the last three paragraphs don't ring true, or even if they do, you must read this column by Rangers blogger Jason Parks -- it's one of the best pieces I've read on the subject of hype and expectations, something all of us who cover the minor leagues are guilt of practicing, and propagating: http://mvn.com/mlb-rangers/2008/07/12/give-it-a-name/. Read it.
Something else that would suit me, though it's a more difficult scenario to cook up, is to get a key bullpen piece -- one that would be under control for multiple years -- for Blalock. The problem there is that teams who show interest in Blalock will be looking to improve their chances to win in 2008, and teams trying to win now are unlikely to part with a plus reliever.
But what about a minor league reliever like Boston's Daniel Bard, who has a 1.92 ERA in 61 innings between Low A Greenville and AA Portland this year? The 2006 first-rounder has punched out nearly 12 batters per nine innings this year and walked just three per nine, and opponents are hitting an anemic .171 off of the 23-year-old. The Red Sox, as we discussed last year at the time of the Eric Gagné trade, have a pretty clear top tier of prospects but are the type of franchise that might be willing to move prospects from their second tier since they aren't going to rebuild any time in the foreseeable future. A club like Boston is just as likely to add a big-dollar free agent as a prospect to its roster mix as it retools its club each off-season. The Sox will probably count on a rookie or two each year,
but not too many more.
Boston has a couple other presumably near-ready relievers in the upper levels of its farm system (righthander Beau Vaughan, lefthander Hunter Jones), and then there's always Craig Hansen, who is still just 24 and has bounced in three of his four pro seasons between Boston (a very disappointing 6.15 ERA in 67.1 innings) and the farm (2.62 ERA in 127.2 innings) since the Sox drafted him in the first round in 2005, a year before they took Bard. Hansen's only year with no big league service was 2007.
Would Boston, if unable to get Mark Teixeira or a similar impact hitter in the next two weeks, entertain the idea of Blalock as a designated hitter option while David Ortiz rehabs?
T.R. Sullivan thinks the Rangers will trade Oklahoma middle infielder Joaquin Arias before they trade Milton Bradley. That can be read a couple ways, but what I take from it is that he's learned that Arias (.289/.320/.387) he resuscitated some of his trade value, which would be a good thing. Over the last four weeks, he's played shortstop more often than not for the first since 2006, which is important as far as his marketability is concerned.
At this point, if Arias and Nelson Cruz can help get a trade done, great. Cruz is out of options and can leave this winter via free agency if not added to the 40-man roster first. Arias will have one final option in 2009 and doesn't seem to figure into the plans as long as Andrus is around, not to mention German Duran and Jose Vallejo and Marcus Lemon.
Catcher news: Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who has been slowed by a groin injury, didn't work out with the team in Minnesota yesterday because of the flu, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. If he needs to go on the disabled list, Max Ramirez would assume starting duties -- Gerald Laird is reportedly still a week away from a rehab assignment -- and presumably Taylor Teagarden (slated to head to Team USA) would be brought up.
Ian Kinsler got plenty of props during the All-Star Game for being 23 of 24 in stolen base attempts this season, but what the broadcast crew failed to point out was that the one caught-stealing on Kinsler's ledger in a 2008 game that counted was actually a pickoff that resulted in a rundown out.
Another All-Star Game note: Brad Lidge, against whom Michael Young ended the game with the sacrifice fly to right field, had allowed only one sac fly in 40 innings this year. He's given up only 10 sac flies in 441 career innings. His groundout-to-flyout rate in 2008 is 1.52.
Alex Rodriguez met with the media in the clubhouse in the sixth inning Tuesday night, having already changed into a suit and tie. His teammate, Derek Jeter, was right there nine innings after he'd been lifted from the game himself, the first (along with Kinsler) to congratulate Young on the field after his 15th-inning game-winner. Sort sums up the difference between Jeter and A-Rod.
Baseball America says Frisco righthander Neftali Feliz is the Rangers' number one prospect, offering this comment: "Reports that he hit 101 mph twice in his Double-A debut aren't making the Braves feel any better about the Mark Teixeira trade."
Since the trade with Texas, the Braves have a 72-77 record (45-50 in 2008), while Texas is 77-74 (50-46 in 2008).
It's not Teixeira's fault -- he's hit .288/.385/.533 in 147 games with Atlanta, with the second-highest RBI total in baseball (125) over that stretch -- but the trade has unequivocally been a failure for the Braves. And it could get worse when we see what they get for Teixeira in the next two weeks, compared to the package they gave Texas a year ago to get him, or when they're left only with two compensatory draft picks if they can't trade him before the deadline and he leaves this winter.
Righthander Brandon McCarthy gave up a run on five hits and a walk in three innings yesterday, striking out three Arizona League Giants. A transfer to a higher level for the continuation of his 30-day rehab assignment could be around the corner.
Frisco righthander Thomas Diamond reportedly won't have surgery after all to remove a bone spur in his right foot. He had a cortisone shot instead and hopes to be back on the mound this season.
Texas placed Bakersfield lefthander Kasey Kiker (5-3, 4.55) on the seven-day disabled list with arm fatigue. Doesn't sound too serious. Up in his place is righthander Tanner Roark, the Rangers' 25th-round pick last month. Roark had allowed one earned run (0.73 ERA) on nine hits (.209 opponents' average)
and three walks in 12.1 Arizona League innings, fanning 11. Roark pitched for the University of Illinois for two years before leaving the school for academic reasons, spending time with the Southern Illinois Miners of the independent Frontier League before Texas drafted him.
Two weeks ago, I called Bakersfield lefthander Derek Holland the system's most overlooked player. Now that Holland has gotten the press he deserves lately, I think the torch has been passed to his teammate Renny Osuna, who is hitting .413/.478/.463 for the Blaze after the infielder hit .360/.425/.502 for Clinton through late June.
Beltre is one of very few top prospects in the Rangers system who had a disappointing first half statistically, but he could be on his way to player of the month honors with a huge July for Clinton, sitting at .369/.379/.631 thus far in the month. He has multiple hits in five of his last six games, a stretch that included a three-game homer streak.
In 10.1 innings between the Arizona League and Clinton, 5'7" left-handed reliever Joseph Ortiz has allowed two earned runs (1.74 ERA) and six hits (.171 opponents' average) while fanning 11.
He's 17 years old.
As Scott Lucas pointed out this morning, Clinton's Cristian Santana (.239/.310/.435) caught last night for the first time in 2008. The Rangers moved him from catcher to the outfield in spring training.
The Rangers signed lefthander Jason Stanford and assigned him to Oklahoma. The 31-year-old has a lifetime 3.61 ERA in parts of three seasons (2003,
2004, 2007) with Cleveland.
Texas came to terms with eighth-round pick Mike Bianucci, who was second in the Cape Cod League in home runs and RBI this summer. He hit .320/.438/.635 for Auburn this season, after hitting .343/.414/.601 over his freshman and sophomore seasons combined. In 553 career Tiger at-bats, Bianucci hit 35 home runs and drove in 127 runs.
Minnesota selected righthander Shooter Hunt, whom Texas drafted in the 34th round in 2005 but couldn't sign, as the first pick of the supplemental first round last month. In his first 14 pro innings, pitching in the rookie-level Appalachian League, Hunt has allowed two hits, walked two, and set 28 hitters down on strikes. Impressive.
Seattle optioned infielder Tug Hulett. The 25-year-old infielder, hitting .302/.378/.508 for AAA Tacoma, went 1 for 3 in his first look in the big leagues.
Cincinnati released righthander Ezequiel Astacio.
Righthander Spike Lundberg, pitching this season for Quintana Roo in the Mexican Pacific League, earned his 100th minor league win on Saturday. He's unofficially the second-biggest active winner in the minor leagues, behind Pat Mahomes.
The Joliet Jackhammers of the independent Northern League sold first baseman Freddie Thon to the White Sox, who assigned the 24-year-old to High A Winston-Salem. The Atlantic City Surf of the independent Can-Am League released righthander Jim Wladyka. The Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League signed infielder Edgardo Alfonzo and outfielder Richard Hidalgo.
In a fair world, VH1's "Rock Honors" would be shown in prime time on a major network, instead of [choose any of the 108 reality shows currently weighing down the schedule]. I wasn't a huge fan of The Who, but that show last night was amazing.
Trade deadline talk picks up major steam with the start of the second half, but it sure feels good that the story on the field is just as compelling, if not more so, than the speculation as to who the Rangers might be selling in the next couple weeks.
To join the free Newberg Report mailing list so you can get e-mail deliveries of every edition of the newsletter, daily minor league game recaps, and frequent Newberg Report News Flashes, go to www.newbergreport.com and click the "Mailing List" link on the top menu bar.
Theres too too many of them around here but none that really have all the pertinent info in one place like Newberg. Ive had to give em up for the most part. Massachusetts is overloaded with MIT and Harvard type stat heads and sabermetricians that chart every single pitch and nuance of a season and present every conceivable chart and graph for analysis which really doesnt do it for me--there is no way that I can keep up, and I have atendency to get carried away and forget the simplicity of the game. I usually drag through a hundred different sites in the wintertime
Im much simpler and as I get older its harder to keep track of names that I only hear about but never see especially in the minors unless there is some simplepoint that stands out or I gather a real interest and study someone out myself....
Ive read Bard's reports before --but it made all the difference seeing him for the first time last night.
NOW I know and NO you still cant have him!
I cant see the Red Sox giving him up, the bullpen which was very solid last year has been shaky at best--especially the setup guys who have all been iffy.....Id be pretty sure (but what do I know) that the big club has as eye on him for a September callup --if not sooner if things dont straighten out pretty soon..
So the answer is yes and No (to the Newberg Report queation) and ..NO you still cant have him! (Bard).
He brings up a good point about getting attached to prospects, but then they shouldnt be let go too easily either.
The RedSox have lost too many over the years in shortsighted trades (Jeff Bagwell for Larry (who?)Anderson). Trades like Beckett/Lowell for Hanley Ramirez only come along because Theo got burned once too many times and is pretty tough on getting someone frontline for what he gives up. Even with what Beckett and Lowell have brought (yea its all good)----Id STILL like to see Hanley Ramirez
This is an interesting time of the year--ya never know how it will play out...---I dont know where the RedSox would be if they hadnt cast a mediocre closer Heathcliff Slocumb to the Mariners for two 'prospects' way back when....Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe---
That one turned out pretty good
I love his line about finding the next pitching Josh Hamilton Get in line!--EVERYONES looking for that!....and I agree with him...that show on The Who was great
I red alot of bad things in the news, somethings you just cant avoid but to me THIS is some of the worst news Ive heard in awhile
OMAHA, Neb. (AP)—Sandlot baseball, a slice of American life enjoyed for decades by boys from coast to coast, appears on the verge of extinction.
Many men over 40 remember those summer days when they headed to the park or vacant lot and played ball all day—or until Mom sent word that it was time for dinner.
Nowadays, most neighborhood ball fields sit empty on summer afternoons, the idea of unsupervised play having gone the way of the rotary-dial phones kids once used to round up the fellas for a game.
The reasons for the sandlot’s demise, baseball coaches and sociologists say, go back to the changing family structure, video games, parents’ fear of crime, and the proliferation of organized and so-called “select” teams for more-talented kids.
Johnny Damon of the New York Yankees says the structured environment of select ball sacrifices the fun kids get from playing on their own.
“I think nowadays kids are getting so worn out playing baseball year-round that by the time they get to the high school level they’re kind of tired of it, and tired of the politics of it, instead of just going out there and playing baseball,” Damon said.
Dan Gould, director of Michigan State’s Institute for the Study of Youth Sport, put it bluntly: “The end of the story is, the sandlots ain’t coming back, as much as we would like them to.”...
...Don Weiskopf, a 79-year-old retired college professor from Eugene, Ore., advocates a revival of sandlot ball on his Web site, Baseball Play America.
A former player in the Cleveland Indians’ organization, Weiskopf said youngsters learn the game best in an unstructured setting.
“The fundamentals of baseball must be practiced continually, even at the big league level,” Weiskopf said in an e-mail. “The lack of pickup games and sandlot ball today has hurt the development of young players.”
Many kids, he said, have missed out on the simple pleasure of playing catch with a parent or sibling.
“Since they are not playing enough catch, the throwing skills of young children have diminished,” Weiskopf said. “They need to make playing catch fun and challenging. Young players need more skill-based, fun-resulting experiences, as opposed to high-pressurized organized league play.”
Michigan State’s Gould laments the demise of pickup baseball games. The 56-year-old spent much of his youth on the sandlots of upstate New York, and he said kids learned more than baseball when they played among themselves.
They could make their own rules, like closing right field when there weren’t enough players. Anyone who hit to right would be out.
They could learn negotiation skills. Was it a ball or strike? Was he safe or out? Was it fair or foul?
They learned organization skills, such as how to pick teams equitably or how to reconfigure the teams if one side was beating the other by a wide margin.
They learned how to get along—up to a point.
“What people forget is that, sometimes, the bigger kid ruled the sandlot,” Gould said.
Bill Olson, father of former major league relief pitcher Gregg Olson, believes the game has adjusted to a changing society.
Olson, a former high school and college coach, gives more than 200 private lessons a month to players ages 12 to 18 at Ultimate Baseball Academy in Omaha. He said parents are willing to pay for baseball instruction the way they do for piano and dance lessons.
“Just going to enjoy the game on the sandlot, that was fine,” Olson said. “But there is a lot of great coaching going on now, more than 15 or 20 years ago.”
Weiskopf said playing in an unstructured environment allows youngsters to experiment with different skill sets and get more repetitions.
But Gould said parents are hesitant to let their kids out of sight for fear they will become crime victims.
“Forty or 50 years ago, people didn’t worry about their kids going down to the sandlot by themselves and playing all day,” Gould said. “Now you’re afraid your kid is going to end up on the milk carton. So there are legitimate fears, whether perceived or actual.”
Weiskopf said most kids do not play baseball unless registered by a parent for an organized team. Many of the youngsters show up at their first practice having never had contact with the game, as opposed to the kids of yesteryear who learned from siblings and older friends.
“Even the worst players (of my day) had a good idea about the game and its rules because we played it often and learned from each other,” Weiskopf said. “Young children are not playing and practicing the game enough today. They are not getting in enough reps, throwing and catching the ball, batting, etc.”
Weiskopf said baseball training centers provide excellent coaching and facilities, but access is limited to those who can afford them.
Playing on a select team exposes youngsters to high quality coaching and top-notch facilities, but late bloomers get left behind in the search for talent, and the cost is high, Gould said.
“If you’re going to play travel baseball, mostly middle class kids can afford it,” he said.
With some select teams playing 70 or more games and having limited practice time, nonstarters on those elite teams don’t get much repetition, said 73-year-old John Stella, who has coached CYO, high school and American Legion ball in inner-city south Omaha since the 1960s.
“So they play a couple innings, get one or two at-bats,” Stella said. “On the sandlot, you’re playing all day and have countless at-bats, countless grounders and fly balls.”
i suppose that I should have seen it happening--i dont see as many kids as years ago on ballfields playing anymore.... This really irks me and saddens me at the same time. No matter what was going on in the broader world, or how bad it was, the underlying fabric that made up our society always seemed to remain intact--and I had confidnce that it would--because simple everyday community things like sandlot baseball were alive and kickin.
Never mind learning the game itself with peers or playing just for the pure fun of it, but the sense of community, friendship and character development that is/was somehow formed without any adult supervision imo was invaluable in a whole host of ways to forming solid and balanced identities but also good for the entire group of particpants......
Im not wording this right...
I'll let it go--but with all the complete bxllsh!t in the world i cant believe that something as good and wholesome and (at least to me) important as sandlot baseball has disappeared.
Of course it's a shame. And it certainly is regrettable. I played sandlot ball. I loved it.
But the world is a different place these days.
First, here in Phoenix, any organized little league play is done either in spring, fall or if in the summer, as late in the afternoon as possible, to keep the kids from too much heat and direct sun exposure. The ONLY outdoor play on summer days here, except for idle hands (and gangs finding trouble) is at swimming pools or parks with some sort of water play.
Other than that, the dramatic increase in the US population, seemingly ubiquitous presence of convicted sex offenders in so many places, can you blame parents for not wanting their kids to go unsupervised or without structured activities?
When I was raising kids, it was... well, for the boys not as much of a worry, but still, some worry.
even though I was aware of this, it still depresses me.
I played some little league baseball-and A LOT of pick up sandlot. I learned how to hit, catch, and throw, by spending endless hours with whoever I could find to play with. I wouldn't have even MADE the little league team without it. I guess these days everyone makes the team, which is another debate. I was once the last cut on a team, and it threw me for a loop. It also made me honestly access my abilities in order to improve.
I loved wearing my Raybestos Cardinals uniform (#8-same as Yogi), but those games were a drop in the bucket compered to my daily life of keeping my glove on my handle bars, just in case I run into a game somewhere.
thats what I thought too. In the summers I left the house at daybreak, glove , bats , balls all situated on the bike and returned sometime around supper time.--and then it was go out some more until dark---Even if it was just me pitching like Juan Marichal against the stone wall...although Charlie Harrow, Bobby Mchugh, Paul Reed, Pinchy and the Welfords would usually show up for a street game in front of my house..... Punky had a lot of power, to this day Lee Sardella is known to me as Shaper...Given the chance I could name em all and what they were good at....
The league games were small potatoes compared to what us kids did on our own. If I played 50 organized games between Little League and Babe Ruth League over the years Id be surrpised, but I must have played 100 or 1000 times that many pickup games of all forms and shapes during the same period.
Didnt matter if there were 4 kids or 15, whether we had a regular field, a street, a backyard, or an alley. We agreed on rules for the situation (past the second tree is a double--or....-anything to right is an out) and hit, fielded, threw and ran all day long and became pretty good--but we not only learned the game and played it endlessly but also learned social skills and dealing with 100's of different situations on our own.
Its sad to me--i guess I should have viewed it as inevitable --but I didnt---with all the good things that are disappearing I never ever though theyd get to something like this...
BTW--although it doesnt get near as much use as it used to, at 53-- I still carry a glove ball and bat in my vehicle--just in case
On the outside (far far outside ) chance that any of yous guys (or any lurkers---ie Hi Ex!)will be in Baltimore on Aug 18, 19, 20. I have 2 tickets at Camden Yards for each of 3 games Sox vs. O's, that i unfortuantely wont be able to get to...
This will be the last chance to see the Sox and O's at Camden Yards until the next time they play!
Re: the who thing on VH1... I liked it when the who took the stage but I was only impressed by one of the artist's renditions: Pearl Jam. They really did it right. Powerful.
Re: sandlot baseball... yeah, me too! It's sad... we always played all summer from sunup til sundown either in pickup games or in youth athletic leagues (my folks helped found one back then) As I got older (13 or 14) there didn't seem to be too many guys interested in pickup games so I just played in two leagues! Pony and Colt... that jump to Colt was a big step! but it was all good, I found I could still hit and still catch!
My nephew has played on traveling teams and on his high school team for the past few years... and now I think he's vacillating on whether or not he's going to play in college... (but he is going to VMI, we're proud of him).
Re: Bard... they just announced on the radio that we're in talks with the BoSox... Bard for Teagarden straight up!
Re: Bard... they just announced on the radio that we're in talks with the BoSox... Bard for Teagarden straight up!
hmmmm--I spent most of last winter talking about Teagarden---and from what Ive read I really like him and would love to have him..( I think he is a little down offensively this year but havent checked recently---) ....BUT after seeing Bard pitch ----I get torn----I guess that is what Newberg meant about not getting too attached...
It might, and probably would be a good trade for both teams (although Id hate to see Bard go...).
----Im Glad I dont have to make these decisions.
Just as an aside--If that trade did go through how exactly does it work if the Red Sox want Teagarden NOW since he is an Olympian? --(not saying they will--but with the catching hitting about .050 since June you never know---)
hmmmm--I spent most of last winter talking about Teagarden---and from what Ive read I really like him and would love to have him..( I think he is a little down offensively this year but havent checked recently---) ....BUT after seeing Bard pitch ----I get torn----I guess that is what Newberg meant about not getting too attached...
It might, and probably would be a good trade for both teams (although Id hate to see Bard go...).
----Im Glad I dont have to make these decisions.
Just as an aside--If that trade did go through how exactly does it work if the Red Sox want Teagarden NOW since he is an Olympian? --(not saying they will--but with the catching hitting about .050 since June you never know---)
Never been to Baltimore... was a kid (played my sandlot BB) in Rochester NY... then home to the Orioles AAA farm team... would love to be able to take you up on that... I'm sure I'd love the crabcakes... but, alas, I won't be going.
April Fools starman!!! ...but the stRangers did purchas Teagarden's contract and activated him over the weekend... he's with the club now (Saltalamacchia is sick or something) so it's Teagarden and Max Rameriz. Yesterday against the Twins Teagarden called the whole game and hit a homer in the seventh (I think) to break up a perfect game! stRangers won 1-0.
Now we'd (the fans) rather see Salty go and Laird stay to tutor these young guys...
It was Teagarden's first big league hit... he's from here ya know?
<_< grrrrrrrrrrr I owe you one Dr Strangeglove --you had me goin....
So did he drop the Olympics?
----as far as the Yanks---um... I have first dibs on Teagarden--i called it first.
One of the Molina's has been doing great for them anyway...
I'll get you back........................................
Hey ----I have a question for general discussion Ive been wondering about especially with Rick Ankiel having the year he is having.....
The Red Sox drafted a kid in the first round who is an outstanding shortstop and pitcher----
Like alot of kids his age he is the best at both in his league----multiple no hitters , shut outs and and astronomically low ERA AND he also has an unbelievablel batting average with power and is a great shortstop.
How do you make a decision of which one to develop when he turns pro?
Its a shame that he cant do both for afew years and go the route that develops the most but Im pretty sure that is not the way that it works....
I think they ask the magic eight ball... I sure don't know... maybe they flip a coin or reach into daddy's cookie jar!
They sent Teagarden down today so that he can do his olympics thing... so it's Salty and Ramirez until Laird gets healthy...
We're up 5-1 against Javier Vasquez of the Pale Hose... 3 run shot by Josh, 2 run shot by Blalock (and he's been contributing some fine glove work as well)... get him while he's hot! Don't get me wrong, the fans love 'the Hammer' but we have young guys that can take his place... he's just come of a 12 week stint on the DL, spent a lot of time there last year as well, so we'd like for them to see what they can get for him...
...scouts are starting to show up at our games with interest (Mets and Dodgers last night)
...get Laird while you can BoSox and NYY ...he'll go somewhere, not because he's not wanted here but because he's a client of Boras (the baseball anti-christ)...
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Oct 22 2006
29 posts
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kimberly
I missed the LLWS. The boy had baseball practice 4-7. Playing in a USSSA tournament this coming weekend. The new season has just started. Can ya'll believe we are in September of the ML baseball s
mstar1
Dont scare me like that Bolsh--the way you posted I wasnt sure if it was a done deal--I had to go check....Im on the fence whether to go for Halliday or not---I'd love to have him but I'd hate to give
hiway29
I love those fan trades where players you don't care about, plus a 'prospect', are offered up for a major player. Yeah, the Jays will jump at that deal.
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mstar1
I bet that sign will be a lot more than that--any and every yankee fan wants that one--It may be wrong but I even heard the dang urinals are going for $200--the seats for up to $1000.00.....
well if you want to dump Blalock, Schilling might be available---I think he is making $8mil and hasnt thrown a pitch yet, nor will he BUT he just may be available...Im sure the yankees would love to unload Carl Pavano as well. :)
I wouldnt give up the ship just yet over there, there is still a few weeks til the deadline and anything can happen in the last 50+ games if you are still close...
Blalock has gotta be a good fit somewhere but i dont follow other teams so closely to know who's lookin for someone like him...
We had the Sox AA game on tonight in lieu of the big club-----got my first look at Daniel Bard-young, big kid, incredibly live arm, hasnt got his delivery down yet and has some control issues but throws effortlessly at 98-99 and has a brutal breaking ball
NO DONT ASK --YOU CANT HAVE HIM!
iHe looks like another Papelbon
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Tom Strange
Funny you should mention Bard! Newberg highlighted him this morning... I was going to email this to you but thought 'what the heck' I'll just slap it in here...
Do you guys have something like this in your cities? ...or are we unique? Here it is:
...meanwhile Greg Norman leads "THE OPEN"...
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Rocky
Nope, nothing like that for the Dbacks.
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mstar1
Theres too too many of them around here but none that really have all the pertinent info in one place like Newberg. Ive had to give em up for the most part. Massachusetts is overloaded with MIT and Harvard type stat heads and sabermetricians that chart every single pitch and nuance of a season and present every conceivable chart and graph for analysis which really doesnt do it for me--there is no way that I can keep up, and I have atendency to get carried away and forget the simplicity of the game. I usually drag through a hundred different sites in the wintertime
Im much simpler and as I get older its harder to keep track of names that I only hear about but never see especially in the minors unless there is some simplepoint that stands out or I gather a real interest and study someone out myself....
Ive read Bard's reports before --but it made all the difference seeing him for the first time last night.
NOW I know and NO you still cant have him!
I cant see the Red Sox giving him up, the bullpen which was very solid last year has been shaky at best--especially the setup guys who have all been iffy.....Id be pretty sure (but what do I know) that the big club has as eye on him for a September callup --if not sooner if things dont straighten out pretty soon..
So the answer is yes and No (to the Newberg Report queation) and ..NO you still cant have him! (Bard).
He brings up a good point about getting attached to prospects, but then they shouldnt be let go too easily either.
The RedSox have lost too many over the years in shortsighted trades (Jeff Bagwell for Larry (who?)Anderson). Trades like Beckett/Lowell for Hanley Ramirez only come along because Theo got burned once too many times and is pretty tough on getting someone frontline for what he gives up. Even with what Beckett and Lowell have brought (yea its all good)----Id STILL like to see Hanley Ramirez
This is an interesting time of the year--ya never know how it will play out...---I dont know where the RedSox would be if they hadnt cast a mediocre closer Heathcliff Slocumb to the Mariners for two 'prospects' way back when....Jason Varitek and Derek Lowe---
That one turned out pretty good
I love his line about finding the next pitching Josh Hamilton
Get in line!--EVERYONES looking for that!....and I agree with him...that show on The Who was great
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hiway29
I found the Jeter and Arod story interesting, and is one reason why Jeter is still my favorite player.
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mstar1
That was a good point on the difference between them, and one reason why ARod will never be popular---
---------------------------
.
and just because you might wanna know..
.
...i wonder if there will be any Nephilim available at the trade deadline.....
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mstar1
I red alot of bad things in the news, somethings you just cant avoid but to me THIS is some of the worst news Ive heard in awhile
i suppose that I should have seen it happening--i dont see as many kids as years ago on ballfields playing anymore.... This really irks me and saddens me at the same time. No matter what was going on in the broader world, or how bad it was, the underlying fabric that made up our society always seemed to remain intact--and I had confidnce that it would--because simple everyday community things like sandlot baseball were alive and kickin.
Never mind learning the game itself with peers or playing just for the pure fun of it, but the sense of community, friendship and character development that is/was somehow formed without any adult supervision imo was invaluable in a whole host of ways to forming solid and balanced identities but also good for the entire group of particpants......
Im not wording this right...
I'll let it go--but with all the complete bxllsh!t in the world i cant believe that something as good and wholesome and (at least to me) important as sandlot baseball has disappeared.
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Rocky
Of course it's a shame. And it certainly is regrettable. I played sandlot ball. I loved it.
But the world is a different place these days.
First, here in Phoenix, any organized little league play is done either in spring, fall or if in the summer, as late in the afternoon as possible, to keep the kids from too much heat and direct sun exposure. The ONLY outdoor play on summer days here, except for idle hands (and gangs finding trouble) is at swimming pools or parks with some sort of water play.
Other than that, the dramatic increase in the US population, seemingly ubiquitous presence of convicted sex offenders in so many places, can you blame parents for not wanting their kids to go unsupervised or without structured activities?
When I was raising kids, it was... well, for the boys not as much of a worry, but still, some worry.
Anyway, I digress...
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hiway29
even though I was aware of this, it still depresses me.
I played some little league baseball-and A LOT of pick up sandlot. I learned how to hit, catch, and throw, by spending endless hours with whoever I could find to play with. I wouldn't have even MADE the little league team without it. I guess these days everyone makes the team, which is another debate. I was once the last cut on a team, and it threw me for a loop. It also made me honestly access my abilities in order to improve.
I loved wearing my Raybestos Cardinals uniform (#8-same as Yogi), but those games were a drop in the bucket compered to my daily life of keeping my glove on my handle bars, just in case I run into a game somewhere.
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mstar1
thats what I thought too. In the summers I left the house at daybreak, glove , bats , balls all situated on the bike and returned sometime around supper time.--and then it was go out some more until dark---Even if it was just me pitching like Juan Marichal against the stone wall...although Charlie Harrow, Bobby Mchugh, Paul Reed, Pinchy and the Welfords would usually show up for a street game in front of my house..... Punky had a lot of power, to this day Lee Sardella is known to me as Shaper...Given the chance I could name em all and what they were good at....
The league games were small potatoes compared to what us kids did on our own. If I played 50 organized games between Little League and Babe Ruth League over the years Id be surrpised, but I must have played 100 or 1000 times that many pickup games of all forms and shapes during the same period.
Didnt matter if there were 4 kids or 15, whether we had a regular field, a street, a backyard, or an alley. We agreed on rules for the situation (past the second tree is a double--or....-anything to right is an out) and hit, fielded, threw and ran all day long and became pretty good--but we not only learned the game and played it endlessly but also learned social skills and dealing with 100's of different situations on our own.
Its sad to me--i guess I should have viewed it as inevitable --but I didnt---with all the good things that are disappearing I never ever though theyd get to something like this...
BTW--although it doesnt get near as much use as it used to, at 53-- I still carry a glove ball and bat in my vehicle--just in case
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mstar1
On the outside (far far outside ) chance that any of yous guys (or any lurkers---ie Hi Ex!)will be in Baltimore on Aug 18, 19, 20. I have 2 tickets at Camden Yards for each of 3 games Sox vs. O's, that i unfortuantely wont be able to get to...
This will be the last chance to see the Sox and O's at Camden Yards until the next time they play!
good seats --and a good getaway.
Let me know or they're goin on EBay
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Tom Strange
Re: the who thing on VH1... I liked it when the who took the stage but I was only impressed by one of the artist's renditions: Pearl Jam. They really did it right. Powerful.
Re: sandlot baseball... yeah, me too! It's sad... we always played all summer from sunup til sundown either in pickup games or in youth athletic leagues (my folks helped found one back then) As I got older (13 or 14) there didn't seem to be too many guys interested in pickup games so I just played in two leagues! Pony and Colt... that jump to Colt was a big step! but it was all good, I found I could still hit and still catch!
My nephew has played on traveling teams and on his high school team for the past few years... and now I think he's vacillating on whether or not he's going to play in college... (but he is going to VMI, we're proud of him).
Re: Bard... they just announced on the radio that we're in talks with the BoSox... Bard for Teagarden straight up!
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mstar1
hmmmm--I spent most of last winter talking about Teagarden---and from what Ive read I really like him and would love to have him..( I think he is a little down offensively this year but havent checked recently---) ....BUT after seeing Bard pitch ----I get torn----I guess that is what Newberg meant about not getting too attached...
It might, and probably would be a good trade for both teams (although Id hate to see Bard go...).
----Im Glad I dont have to make these decisions.
Just as an aside--If that trade did go through how exactly does it work if the Red Sox want Teagarden NOW since he is an Olympian? --(not saying they will--but with the catching hitting about .050 since June you never know---)
(Scalping Voice) tickets? .....need tickets?....ggggreat seats Sox--O's-------
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Rocky
Never been to Baltimore... was a kid (played my sandlot BB) in Rochester NY... then home to the Orioles AAA farm team... would love to be able to take you up on that... I'm sure I'd love the crabcakes... but, alas, I won't be going.
What about selling on StubHub?
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Tom Strange
April Fools starman!!! ...but the stRangers did purchas Teagarden's contract and activated him over the weekend... he's with the club now (Saltalamacchia is sick or something) so it's Teagarden and Max Rameriz. Yesterday against the Twins Teagarden called the whole game and hit a homer in the seventh (I think) to break up a perfect game! stRangers won 1-0.
Now we'd (the fans) rather see Salty go and Laird stay to tutor these young guys...
It was Teagarden's first big league hit... he's from here ya know?
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Tom Strange
NYY just put Posada on the DL with possible season ending surgery... maybe they'd like to buy one of our nice young catchers???
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mstar1
<_< grrrrrrrrrrr I owe you one Dr Strangeglove --you had me goin....
So did he drop the Olympics?
----as far as the Yanks---um... I have first dibs on Teagarden--i called it first.
One of the Molina's has been doing great for them anyway...
I'll get you back........................................
Hey ----I have a question for general discussion Ive been wondering about especially with Rick Ankiel having the year he is having.....
The Red Sox drafted a kid in the first round who is an outstanding shortstop and pitcher----
Like alot of kids his age he is the best at both in his league----multiple no hitters , shut outs and and astronomically low ERA AND he also has an unbelievablel batting average with power and is a great shortstop.
How do you make a decision of which one to develop when he turns pro?
Its a shame that he cant do both for afew years and go the route that develops the most but Im pretty sure that is not the way that it works....
Anyone know how they make this decision?
or what would you do?
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Tom Strange
I think they ask the magic eight ball... I sure don't know... maybe they flip a coin or reach into daddy's cookie jar!
They sent Teagarden down today so that he can do his olympics thing... so it's Salty and Ramirez until Laird gets healthy...
We're up 5-1 against Javier Vasquez of the Pale Hose... 3 run shot by Josh, 2 run shot by Blalock (and he's been contributing some fine glove work as well)... get him while he's hot! Don't get me wrong, the fans love 'the Hammer' but we have young guys that can take his place... he's just come of a 12 week stint on the DL, spent a lot of time there last year as well, so we'd like for them to see what they can get for him...
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Rocky
The Big Unit got win #291 tonight... pitching 7 shutout innings and the Dbacks bullpen did NOT self destruct this time!!!
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mstar1
12 weeks on the DL?
sounds like a trade for Trot Nixon might be in order--I think he is with the Mets now
...watch out Varitek is on fire..that makes two Homeruns in his last 53 games now...
I'll be glad when this West Coast swing is over--I hate these games that start after 10.
Is RJ collecting Social Security Yet? he must be darn close
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Rocky
Yeah... he's 44. and a perfect 13-0 against the Cubs.
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Tom Strange
Has his acne cleared up yet?
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Rocky
I think so, but he's still just as ugly as ever. But that's part of his charm! :)
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Tom Strange
...scouts are starting to show up at our games with interest (Mets and Dodgers last night)
...get Laird while you can BoSox and NYY ...he'll go somewhere, not because he's not wanted here but because he's a client of Boras (the baseball anti-christ)...
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