It's Prospectus Time
by DanUpBaby on Feb 23, 2009 8:45 AM EST
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PrintAs of last Friday I've worked through another in my long line of slow, minute steps toward the baseball season. I picked up Baseball Prospectus 2009 from Barnes and Noble and began reading it as I always do—out of order, on a page-to-page basis, while I eat lunch and watch baseball, ideally at the same time. (It's the best way to go through phonebook-sized books, I think, aside from War and Peace and the actual phonebook.)
It's like I said: it's a small thing, but that's how I thaw the old baseball muscles (metaphor muscles to follow) after a long layoff: mechanical rituals and routines. Some players chop wood at the family farm; others lift weights or play Wii Fit. After enough work lifting Prospectus (628 pages) and playing Baseball Mogul I always seem to reach Opening Day in the best shape of my life.
With that in mind, a look at Prospectus 09's Cardinals content.
Essay: The essay this year is a standard rundown of where the Cardinals have been and are now, attributing our Best Fans in the World aura to their continual success through the years. Pull quote: "In short, Cardinals fans have never experienced the long losing stretches that sap support for the hometown nine. 'Wait 'til next year' has almost always been informed by a reasonable expectation the team would return to contention."
Good News: Brett Wallace is projected to hit like an average third baseman as soon as this year; Kinney, McClellan, Motte, and Perez are all projected to pitch like top-flight relievers; Albert Pujols is projected to hit like Albert Pujols.
Bad News: They're none too enamored of Mitch Boggs, who "doesn't have the stuff or command to maintain a sport in the rotation"; David Freese is not projected to hit like an average third baseman as soon as this year.
Interesting Comparables: Troy Glaus is compared, by the PECOTA projection system, to former teammate Tim Salmon; Cesar Izturis gets compared to Aaron Miles, who, in a terrible snub, does not return the favor; Daryl Jones gets compared to—wait, this deserves a line break—
Daryl Jones gets compared to Childhood Hero Ray Lankford
—Yadier Molina gets compared to brother Bengie; Joe Mather gets compared to Ryan Ludwick. One infielder gets compared to Tom Herr, and I will give you a high-five, to be redeemed at some later date, if you can name him without thinking about it.
Players for whom Frank Thomas is listed as a comp: 2.
While we're here, have you guys begun saying your baseball rosary yet? Is there some small thing you have to get over with before baseball starts?
#
Meanwhile, the P-D has a long, interesting piece from Strauss re: the Schumaker Experiment. Perhaps most interesting is the brief look into how one trains to become a Gritty, Scrappy La Russa Favorite:
"From the time he was 4, Skip was always an infielder if he wasn't pitching," recalls his father, Wayne, division chief for the Los Angeles Dept. of Beach and Harbors. "He was drafted at shortstop."
"My parents always thought I should be an infielder," says the son.
On the day he learned of the intended switch, Skip phoned his father, demanding Wayne meet him at his former high school's artificial turf football field to beat ground balls. The two worked out in a driving rainstorm.
"It doesn't matter what position Skip plays, he will play it at 110 percent," Wayne Schumaker says.
If you're wondering why Strauss didn't get into how he learned to hit the ball on the ground and Leave It All on the Field, those are trade secrets.
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Tommy Herr.
Kahlil Greene?
[Homer shows Bart "Wonderbat".]
Bart: Wow. How many home runs you gonna hit with that thing?
Homer: Let's see... We play thirty games. Ten at-bats a game. Mm...three thousand.
It's gotta be Skip
If he’s projected as a second baseman, his numbers are oddly similar to Herr’s (offensively, at least). Sure, he doesn’t run as much, but his Avg/OBP/OPS last year looks just like a Herr line. If Skip hit about 10 more doubles, it would have been one of Herr’s best seasons.
I don't have this year's Prospectus with me...
… but from my memory of the Cards chapter, Schumaker was not projected at second.
Lou Brock loves Lamp.
Joe Thurston
The artist formerly known as...
Mr Redbird @ Viva El Birdos
PowerOfDixieland @ Track Em Tigers, other SEC blogs
by jd is legend on Feb 23, 2009 11:24 AM EST up reply actions
I have a little bit of schadenfruede
watching Strauss turn out all these Schumaker pieces after deriding the switch in chats.
+ Eins, Ja das ist sehr gut.
The only problem is that he will want some revenge and may make good on his bedrohung zu schreiben Birdland.
"Do what you want to the women and children but leave me alone"- George Carlin
by That's a Winner on Feb 23, 2009 11:13 AM EST up reply actions
wanna hear something crazy?
he somehow convinced Skippy not to go on 1380’s TMA last week when they were in Jupiter because he told him they were against him playing 2nd & making fun of the entire situation. when in fact it was the exact opposite, vaughn has been saying put him at 2nd since the show started in 07.
i guess that’s why they call him El Diablo
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
I heard them bitching about that (in between giggles)
on Friday, IIRC. I was confused at the time but that makes sense now.
yeah,
i heard the same thing friday, except i didn’t hear anything about him saying tma was against him at second. that’s completely absurd.
it's weird
at first I thought your avatar was spiderman
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:36 PM EST up reply actions
why would he have one of Torri Hunter?
i could be wrong about why El Diablo got Skippy to skip the show, but somehow he did get him to walk away from their table.
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
should I be baffled?
because I am
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:45 PM EST up reply actions
you have never heard Torri called Spiderman before?
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
Are you sure you aren't thinking of Sarge Jr.
because of his catch in Texas?
by Hardcore Legend on Feb 23, 2009 6:59 PM EST up reply actions
no, Torri was called that for years in Minnesota
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
Frank Thomas comps?
I think it’s pretty obvious who the first comp is.
Who else might line up with The Big Hurt? I don’t know of any other player yet on the major league roster who compares. His very high slugging, OBP, and batting averages (at least for the first half of his career or so—damn Frank Thomas was a beast) don’t scream “Ryan Ludwick, Rick Ankiel, or Troy Glaus” to me. So I’m gonna have to say Brett Wallace.
He really was a beast
I always loved the Big Hurt. I can’t think of who would be the second comp. No one on the team makes sense in that spot, for me at least. I don’t think it would be Wallace already.
What exactly do
“comps” mean in the BP universe (I’m not a subscriber)? Is it a similar concept to the comps on Baseball Reference?
I’ll go with Wallace as well … there’s no one else in the organization that could even approach the Pujols standard in anyone’s imagination, is there?
by MdRedbirdFreak on Feb 23, 2009 11:43 AM EST up reply actions
That's what I was wondering.
With baseballreference the sample size issues would come up. Ludwick only has one major league season that resembles Thomas. Glaus is a very good hitter, but not on the scale of Thomas.
it's not glaus or luddy
Also, it isn’t Chris Duncan. Although dunc’s a LHB, he’s the first guy I thought of. but no, it’s a righty, with one physical dimension the same as Frank Thomas.
Another hint: There has been more than one Frank Thomas.
"i have a feeling the answers are bigger than the questions" -Dr Heyward Floyd
Huh.
This “other Frank Thomas” that you reference, had he existed (as you claim which I am not ready to to accept just yet) would have hypothetically played from about 1951 to 1966… and he would have been the same height as… dun dun dun Brian Barton!
haha, but no
i was a bit vague above.
the cardinal who is compared to Frank Thomas the Elder, is the same height as Frank Thomas the Younger.
"i have a feeling the answers are bigger than the questions" -Dr Heyward Floyd
Hhhm...
Mather’s 2008 in the majors would make sense for Elder Thomas, but b-ref has him at 6’4" and Younger Thomas at 6’5". I give up!
bingo
(pecota has mather at 6’5").
"i have a feeling the answers are bigger than the questions" -Dr Heyward Floyd
I thought maybe Stavinoha
no, wait… that would have been a comp to Prince (who isn’t much of a) Fielder
David Freese
I’m not surprised Freese isn’t projected to hit like an average MLB 3rd baseman. Based on his overall AAA numbers, I’d say the same thing. But that 1.000 OPS over his final 3 months, and 1.050 for the final 2, may bode much better.
Normally an overage prospect with a mediocre BB/K ratio wouldn’t interest me, but Freese was making the HUGE jump from a high-A hitter’s league all the way to AAA, so it’s certainly plausible that he’d need a couple hundred AB’s to adjust to the markedly tougher pitching.
Moreover, Freese’s glovework is apparently good enough that even if his OPS is 30-40 points below MLB average at the hot corner, he’ll still be average overall. On balance, I’ll stay cautiously optimistic.
Let's hope that Skip
has a little bit of Biggio in him. Biggio made 3 moves in his career without too much difficulty. I think Skip has a little bit of the same makeup.
If I were La Russa, I would not give up on making this move even if it takes this year and ST of next year. I would keep putting him at 2nd all year at every opportunity even if he is not excelling.
why did biggio ever move away from catcher?
i’ve wondered this for a while. was he just not a good catcher?
if i were a manager, and young biggio was on my team, i would want to keep him at catcher.
maybe there were other catchers in the organization who they needed to clear a spot for?
if memory serves
it was the organization’s belief that Biggio had the makings of a long term value to the club… but, the wear and tear of catching would much sooner compromise his endurance and speed. Also, he was small for a catcher and did not really have a great catcher-type arm.
Unlike his brief move to CF, which WAS to open up a spot for - I forget whom at 2b.
That's what I remember also
I remember seeing Biggio catch and he was an aggressive little catcher that got knocked flat several times and the organization said: no more, he’s to valuable long term to get hurt trying to block big outfielders from the plate.
Jeff Kent
I think
"Your Holiness, I'm Joseph Medwick. I, too, used to be a Cardinal."-Joe Medwick, to Pope Pius XII.
by redbirdnation8206 on Feb 24, 2009 1:38 AM EST up reply actions
I'd try Freese
if I was running the team, just to see if he had value.
But he remains a longshot:
Weighted mean PECOTA: .235/.300/.382
75th Percentile PECOTA: .252/.318/.418
90th Percentile PECOTA: .266/.333/.448
Still Freese beats the predictions for Barden, the current frontrunner:
Weighted mean PECOTA of .218/.284/.323.
75th Percentile PECOTA of .236/.304/.355
90th Percentile PECOTA: .251/.320/.379.
Gotta give Freese the shot at 3B
due to the combination of plus defender and power potential. He has a ton more upside than Barden.
+1
Freese should be starting at third, unless Mather somehow shows he can play decent 3B
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 10:43 AM EST up reply actions
i will agree with the upside on Freese...
but if i remember correctly Barden had ++ defense at 3B when he was in the D’backs system…
"Baseball is dull only to dull minds." - Red Barber
True
but Barden’s upside is a solid utility infielder. If Freese is able to demonstrate that the power surge from the 2nd half of 2008 is for real, he could be starting 3B with plus defense who hits 20 HRs per season … and is cost controlled for 6 years. That’s gold.
That seems way to pessimistic
PECOTA would be biased against a player like Freese because they use comps to predict future performance. Freese is about to be a 27 year old rookie, so there aren’t a lot of players like that who have put as good of numbers as he has.
CHONE’s weighted mean projection for Freese is .267/.329/.433 which is only a little worse than PECOTA’s 90% projetion. That seems like a better estimate of Freese’s expected performance next year. If he is able to hit like that and play above average defense, he would be a 3 WAR player over a full season.
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Feb 23, 2009 5:46 PM EST up reply actions
Well his age is the problem
If you’re a 26-year old rookie, you probably are not very good.
For what it is worth, they have his season last year as being equivalent to this line in the majors:
.259/.308/.454
PECOTA sees this line, but also sees this major league equivalency for 2007: .211/.287/.333
It also probably doesn’t like his 39/119 strikeout to walk ratio as a 25-year old in AAA.
It looks at the two seasons and expects quite a bit of regression. If his improvement in 2008 was entirely real, he’ll beat that PECOTA. I’d try him.
Freese is a 26 year old rookie
because he was a 5 year senior in college. In three seasons in the minors, his slash line has been .307/.385/.529/.914. He clearly hasn’t had perfromance issues. I believe that he was 25 last year, which isn’t that old for a AAA player, and considering that he made a jump from high A to AAA and played just as well, you have to give him credit that he might just be good prospect not just an old AAAA player.
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Feb 23, 2009 9:26 PM EST up reply actions
I was explaining what PECOTA was seeing....
You don’t have to convince me—I’m not PECOTA. I keep saying I’d play him.
doesn't playing at 110%
increase the risk of injury?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 10:44 AM EST reply actions
Maybe,
but you just spit a little tobacco on it, and tough it out. (Taken from The Zen Of Grit)
"In this game, don't nobody know nuthin' about nuthin'." -- attributed to Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra
by The Ol Goaler on Feb 23, 2009 10:56 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
If a hunnert percent was good enough for John Glenn...
… then it’s good enough for me.
Lou Brock loves Lamp.
Dammit, Dan
I was going to do a bit on the new BPro, but I’m broke right now. My copy is sitting on the shelf, mocking me from behind the registers.
by Anonymous Communist on Feb 23, 2009 12:40 PM EST reply actions
anyone want to start a bet on if Barton makes the roster?
what do ya think, 5:1 odds?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 12:52 PM EST reply actions
13:2
The artist formerly known as...
Mr Redbird @ Viva El Birdos
PowerOfDixieland @ Track Em Tigers, other SEC blogs
by jd is legend on Feb 23, 2009 1:18 PM EST up reply actions
I hope he makes it.
He is right handed, fast, and can hit leadoff. Plus the cool hair. Now, if he could just figure out a way to keep his helmet from falling off all the time.
Odds: 3:1
And I say England's greatest prime minister was Lord Palmerston.
by tangledbrett on Feb 23, 2009 1:32 PM EST up reply actions
He could go with the little league chin strap
But that would be so dorky it might negate the incredible coolness his hair adds bringing him to a neutral on the cool scale. I say just let it fly!
i think velcro should be strongly considered.
"i have a feeling the answers are bigger than the questions" -Dr Heyward Floyd
Don't need velcro
just pass a few strands of hair through the ear holes and tie ’em off under the chin.
true
I guess you only really need the helmet when at the plate, though
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:51 PM EST up reply actions
Love to see him on the team.
And to see one or more OFs traded to make it happen.
But it won’t. 20-1.
by MdRedbirdFreak on Feb 23, 2009 1:49 PM EST up reply actions
agreed
we would probably have to move BOTH Ankiel and Duncan for it to happen; if Barton were a capable middle infielder…hmmm.. that might be different.
I too would like to see him on the roster, tho. I think he could be a super So Taguchi type.
The odds are tied to:
1. Schu sticking at 2B
2. Colby playing in Memphis
TLR has already decided that Schu is going to stick, so that one is easy. Pretty sure Colby will start the season in Memphis regardless of his spring training performance unless somebody gets hurt/traded. I would give Barton even odds of making the roster.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
It'll be tough
if no one gets traded. Ankiel, Ludwick, Colby, Duncan, Mather, Schumaker (possibly) all figure to be ahead of Barton. One thing he has going for him is right-handedness. I like his speed and on base ability, but it will be difficult for him to make the opening day roster unless someone is hurt or traded.
Why is Duncan such a lock?
Not really asking you directly, just throwing it out there. It seems like it is generally accepted that he will make the team, but I have to question that. I mean, the dude is coming off experimental surgery, hasn’t hit for the last year and a half, and his defense resembles a Barnum and Bailey act.
I realize he is considered the backup first baseman as well, but can’t Mather play first?
And I say England's greatest prime minister was Lord Palmerston.
by tangledbrett on Feb 23, 2009 2:54 PM EST up reply actions
I think there are a lot of people who think
Duncan should have to demonstrate his health and productivity in the minors before he gets another shot, but it should be pretty clear that if he passes for healthy he will be the starting LF. I don’t want to start a big nepotism debate, but he will get every chance to resume his career.
In fairness to L’il Dunc his defense has improved. He is never going to be pretty, but he has become a lot more effective.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
well
there’s last season to look at… it took us way too long to pull him outta the lineup, did it not?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 3:29 PM EST up reply actions
glaus
played first a few times last season.
It's not necessarily
that he should be, but from LaRussa’s comments it’s clear that he’s high on him. LaRussa is obviously the one calling this shot, too. I think he’s low on Barton for defensive reasons, too – although he’s better defensively than Duncan, of course.
I guess we will have to determine
if Duncan’s hitting returns to his past output (I would not guarantee that happening by any means), minus his defensive liabilities, would still make him a better player than Barton. to me, that’s kind of a longshot.
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 4:24 PM EST up reply actions
Dunc as backup at 1b
seems bogus, to me. If Tony can play Miguel Cairo at first base, I need to keep my cell phone charged up because he might be calling ME.
The network of ‘reasons’ to regard Duncan as a probable rosteree seem a fishy mix, to me. Especially given our wealth of options (OF and corners). I don’t dislike little Dunc at all, but I would like to see him peddled to the AL just to clear what I think is a murky air.
I think Duncan
should start in AAA, no question
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:39 PM EST up reply actions
if we can trade him for a decent trade
that would be good too
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:46 PM EST up reply actions
i hear San Fan needs a lefty bat
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
duncan and skip?
unless skip can play 2B, this season is already shaping up to be very confusing
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:52 PM EST up reply actions
It would be pretty surprising to me
if our starting OF was anything except Duncan, Ankiel, and Ludwick, barring injury of course. They won’t keep Colby on the roster unless he is going to start and that looks very unlikely. If Skip is primarily a second baseman that means Barton’s competition for the two reserve OF spots are Mather and Stavinoha. And, for now at least, Stavinoha is a catcher. So, unless they sign somebody, or somebody gets hurt, or a prospect not named Rasmus shoves his way into the mix it looks like Barton has a good chance.
If he doesn’t make it I am just dying to see who TLR bats lead off against LHPs. Anyone want to lay odds on that one? My money is on Skip because TLR just knows he is an everyday player.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
just curious
why do you think it is very unlikely that Rasmus makes the team?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 3:38 PM EST up reply actions
I don't think Ras will make the roster
unless he is starting, at least vs. RHPs. Since it appears to be a lock that Ank and Dunc will be the starters unless Ank is not healthy or Dunc’s head actually falls off his neck, it makes sense (at least in someone’s universe) that Colby will start the season in Memphis.
Of course, my personal preference would be for Duncan to start the season on some kind of extended rehab in Memphis, but I think the chance of that is about the same as Adam Kennedy being on TLR’s Christmas card list.
Those Pilgrims ain't lookin' so proud now...
I wish they could just come out and say that they are going to keep him in the minors
until mid-season, but then again, that’s not very realistic
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 9:16 PM EST up reply actions
lot of assumptions
I doubt Stavinoha makes the squad, and I’m doubtful about Duncan coming up right away too. You might be right about Colby not coming up unless he’s starting, but who knows?
if he smokes rasmus in spring training
he’ll probably be ahead of him… I’m sure they wouldn’t mind an excuse to not bring up rasmus until mid season
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 3:28 PM EST up reply actions
doesn't some of it depend on how the roster is structured?
so if we had, say, a middle infield of Freese/Greene/Thurston/Pujols, and had Barden or Ryan as a backup for 2B/SS/3B, we could carry 6 outfielders (Razza/Luddy/Ankiel/Dunc/Mather/Skip). Then, Barton would be the next up if somebody got hurt or traded or stayed at Memphis (razza/dunc).
Of course, tony could also take advantage of the open slot to add another pitcher, which might make more sense.
do you think it likely
that Tony would carry only ONE backup MI ?
I don’t think he trusts Ryan enough to cover the role, or anyone else probably.
Even less probable is that he jerks Skip back and forth from 2b and LF; this would sorta give him two MI backups, but I doubt he’d risk it
Plus, your last caveat is very telling. Given the iffiness of our bullpen, I’m sure there will as many pitchers as possible on the roster for the first month or so, especially given our brutal first 35-game schedule.
i think his efforts to mix mather and skip into the infield point in that direction.
even if skippy isn’t our starting 2b, that doesn’t mean that Tony won’t kick him out there on the odd day.
we could carry barden and ryan as backup IF, but unless both seem to be hitting very well, i’m not sure why that makes sense.
i do think that tony may put 13 pitchers on the roster — that’s a very good possibility.
Jeff Gordon
On his chat today, he is trying to put forth the notion that the Cardinals payroll is going to be around $80 million.
Jeff Gordon: Yeah, an $80 million payroll looks quite possible. Here are the veterans signed:
Albert $16 million
Carpenter $14 million
Glaus $11.25 million
Pineiro $7.5 million
Lohse $7.125 million
Greene $6.5 million
Wellemeyer $4.05 million
Kennedy $4 million
Ludwick $3.7 million
Molina $3.25 million
Ankiel $2.825 million
Wainwright $2.6 million
Franklin $2.5 million
La Rue $950,000
Duncan $825,000
Thompson $650,000
Miller $500,000
Ring $475,000
Lots of room to spend, even if the budget is now $90 million.
It’s already over $90 million! Whatever happened to competent reporting?
"Whatever happened to competent reporting?"
// just giving you a hard time.
On with the (good) youth movement!
HAHA
what a f***ing dumbass
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Feb 23, 2009 5:24 PM EST up reply actions
well gordo did put it togther, you should expect nothing but stupidity when it comes to him
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
global warming?
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
carbon monoxide poisoning?
asbestos and lead?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:47 PM EST up reply actions
editors smeditors
send it right to the press!
not a good idea
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 9:17 PM EST up reply actions
i prefer Access Hollywood
Nancy O’dell is divine
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
He needs the VEB
roster matrix.
if daryl jones
becomes ray lankford, i think we would have one hell of a cost controlle outfield in 2011 with rasmus in center, jones in left and jon jay in right(may swap rasmus and jay)
That would be the best defensive outfield in the game
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Feb 23, 2009 5:31 PM EST up reply actions
maybe by that point we'll have
dunc at first, skip at second, mather at third — hell, why not barton at short, and stavinoha at catcher and have an ALL-OUTFIELD cardinal team in 2011!
I say leave Pujols in the lineup...
he was an OFer once, too.
Sometimes I wonder,
"Why is that frisbee getting bigger?"
...and then it hits me!!
are there any more spring training photos up?
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 3:38 PM EST reply actions
thanks
I couldn’t find that link at stltoday
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:40 PM EST up reply actions
My favorite
The artist formerly known as...
Mr Redbird @ Viva El Birdos
PowerOfDixieland @ Track Em Tigers, other SEC blogs
by jd is legend on Feb 23, 2009 6:45 PM EST up reply actions
what they don't show you is the brick wall he bulldozed through
with jimmy rollins fathead stuck to it at the end of the blue tarp
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
They should trade Jones now...
The way Ray Lankford was treated in St. Louis by the fans is really a sore spot with me. For such a great player to be treated so badly (just because he strikes out a lot) is just infuriating to me.
Not even just the people who call in the shows or post on the PD boards (where he’s called LanKKKford, which is incredibly tacky), but even casual fans seemed to hate him.
Felipe Lopez - next year's Joel Pineiro (on another team, thank you Mo!)
I love him
he is what I picture Rasmus like at his peak except with better defense in center field.
vivaelbeñsheets
by vivaelpujols on Feb 23, 2009 6:08 PM EST up reply actions
how could anyone not love Ray?
Geelafreakinweez, do the people that hated Lankford know that he was the only decent thing about that team for several years? I know he was just about the only reason I continued to watch games there for a long while.
* sarcasm might be involved in this comment
and....BEN SHEETS!!! **
**not that BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment, just BEN SHEETS!!!
(BEN SHEETS might be involved in this comment)
I loved Lankford, too
The man came to play. Was a joy to watch. Left it all on the field. (Do I sound like Stauss yet?)
I’m serious, though. Lankford was a player to watch every time you went to the ballpark.
Well the umps sure didn't.
I’m not really much of a homer when it comes to criticizing umpiring but I have never seen more bad pitches called strikes against a hitter than Lankford. He must have done something to antagonize them because he got rotten ball/strike calls for several years. In one game I remember Tom Glavine eventually realized that anything he threw to Lankford would be called a strike so by the third or fourth at bat he was throwing ptiches so far outside that his catcher had to dive to his left for them and Ray just kept getting called out. It was an obvious vendetta that I, living far away from St. Lou never heard a rationale for. If any of you did I’d appreciate knowing.
I think it's because he looked sort of nonchalant at the plate
then he’d do that quick swing with the wrists, half the time golfing the ball out of the park. maybe they had to extend the lower part of the strike zone for him!
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 6:54 PM EST up reply actions
my theory (no facts)
is that for specious reasons he got Templeton-ized (in the eyes of our fans if not umpiring crews)… that is, his talent was very graceful and fluid and it might have translated to some as a ‘lack of hustle.’
I never felt that way… just speculating.
The three things I will always remember about Ray:
I’m an hour and a half from Cincinnati, and Langford always seemed to have great games in Riverfront. There was, in fact, a special ‘crack’ to his bat that few hitters make.
The year that McGwire was sucking all the air (for a 4th place team no less) Ray was quietly having a banner year.
Lastly, I think I am right in saying that the all-time # 1 homerun hitter in Busch II was…ta-da… Ray Langford
Should I be worried
that you misspelled his name twice?
by Hardcore Legend on Feb 23, 2009 7:08 PM EST up reply actions
Josh Kinney forgets how to pitch
what a bizarre roto-wire post on the sidebar. He couldn’t make it through a live batting session because his mechanics were terrible? Is that code for ‘his arm fell off’?
by Hardcore Legend on Feb 23, 2009 7:01 PM EST reply actions
according to him it's not a big deal
here’s the quote from Josh that’s on the Cards site,
“I feel great,” he said. “It’s a good problem to have. … I’ve got no pain. My arm feels free and loose and easy. It’s just a matter of harnessing that and getting the timing down to have my pitches where I want, to get the action on them that I want. I throw two or three the way I want to, and two or three in a way that [aren’t as good].”
and Dave said
“His rhythm was inconsistent,” Duncan said. “His arm slot was floating around a little bit. But it’s not something that concerns me. It’s just a day when it wasn’t all clicking for him.”
so yeah, your probably right, his arm is about to asplode all over Jupiter
BEN MOTHERHUSHYOURMOUTH SHEETS
ManRam
I'm going to go try to find a puppy and kick it. - Brad Thompson AND THAT'S A WINNER!
Good news, Bad news
Good news: I’m throwing pain free and easy!
Bad news: I’m spiking the ball ten feet in front of the mound.
Meeting is adjourned. Oh I am sorry sir, I didn't mean to overstep my bounds. You say that.
What?
Meeting is adjourned.
It is?
No, you say that, Governor.
What?
Meeting is adjourned.
It is?
Good thing
We aren’t really counting on a guy who has thrown 7 innings in the past two years. I’ve never gotten the excitement this guy has drawn, he’s had 2 pretty good months in the majors and 2 wasted years.
Not afraid to nitpick
the potential is there
the playing time is not
by Cards Fan in Chitown on Feb 23, 2009 9:19 PM EST up reply actions
Got the book a few days ago
I usually read teams I’m interested in first and then just go alphabetically.
by Brendan Scolari on Feb 23, 2009 8:52 PM EST reply actions
re: leaving it all on the field
Didn’t he learn that from Oil Can Boyd?
Gifted on the mound since early boyhood, Boyd’s dazzling assortment of pitches was rivaled only by his even more dizzying assortment of moods. At age 12 he went to see the school psychiatrist because of his tantrums, and at age 17, while playing in a semi-pro game in his hometown of Meridian, Miss., he nearly tossed his career away.
“[An umpire] threw me out of the game because you can’t swear on the ball field,” Boyd once said. “I went wild. I took my uniform off and left the park in my underwear. I sat in my daddy’s car, crying, kicking, cussing, fussing. The next day my daddy said there were a lot of scouts in the ball park, and they all left.”
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