Links for Monday, as Jose Bautista continues to astound…
- Jake Peavy told MLB.com's Scott Merkin that he has no interest in being part of a rebuilding effort at this point in his career. He hasn't given up on the White Sox, though.
- The injured Justin Duchscherer tells John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that he wants to pitch in 2011 (Twitter link).
- Yahoo's Tim Brown lists Dave Trembley, Jerry Manuel and other managers whose jobs aren't completely secure.
- Frankie Piliere of MLB FanHouse names 24 international player to watch leading up to July 2nd, when teams can start signing a new crop of free agents. The Giants are among the favorites to sign top Dominican outfielder Eskarlin Vasquez.
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry says he doesn't have "one thought" in his mind about firing Lou Piniella, according to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).
- Another manager whose contract expires after the season, Jerry Manuel, tells Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork that he isn't worried about his status (Twitter link).
- RotoAuthority identifies some pitchers who have gained and lost velocity this season. Francisco Liriano's fastball has more zip than ever and, now that he's in the rotation, C.J. Wilson isn't throwing as hard.
- Rival executives feel that the Nationals could become aggressive this trade deadline, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney. The Nats, now 20-18, could take on an apparently-oversized contract and make a playoff push.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo explains that top college pitchers Anthony Ranaudo and Drew Pomeranz have struggled recently and aren't as attractive to teams as they once were.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports believes the Cubs should consider firing Lou Piniella if they don't jump into serious contention.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs explains that Jose Bautista and Jake Westbrook could be attractive trade chips later in the summer.
- South Side Sox says Kenny Williams' roster construction "lacked imagination and vision" this year. The result so far: a 15-22 record for the White Sox.
Maybe they should fire Hendry….just a thought.
That will make a bigger impact than trading Piniella. Hendry is the most visible remaining part of the short-sighted, misguided corporate culture that has plagued the Cubs in recent seasons. If the Cubs really want to clean house and start over, Hendry needs to be the next to go. Although Piniella should eventually be let go as well, changing the manager won’t make much difference at this point.
Although I am all for firing Hendry (needed to point that out, in case some didn’t know… lol) Lou also has to go
Right now, our overall hitting isnt that bad and our pitching lines are solid. But for the second straight year we are beyond pitiful in pressure situations (-1.52 WPA, -2.78 Clutch after -4.37 WPA and -4.98 Clutch last season), and seem to have absolutely no sense of urgency or direction. And although most of the BP issues are Hendry’s fault, Lou isnt helping the kids either with questionable usage decisions and moves/statements which will only lower their confidence.
He is definitely someone who needs to go as well, and soon – but both moves do need to take place or we wont succeed.
I don’t see Hendry firing Piniella. I think they’re both going down together, which is sort of fitting. I’m not against firing Piniella, I just don’t believe it will salvage the season. But I suppose anything is possible and sometime firing the manager leads to a drastic change in the team’s performance, the way it seemed to spark Colorado last year. I’m guessing if the Cubs fire Piniella, the Cubs will name Alan Trammell the manager for the rest of the year and I can’t imagine he’s going to be the guy who turns things around. Anyway, the point seems moot as Hendry shot down any talk of firing Piniella for now. Though I’d guess if Hendry himself were suddenly put on the hot seat, he’d do what all incompetent managment does and pass the blame down the chain of command. I think if we want to see Piniella fired, the Ricketts may have to put the heat on Hendry first, but so far they seem reluctant to do that.
The roster construction was Ozzie’s idea but Kenny made the mistake of signing Mark Teahan.
He traded for him, or do you mean the new deal?
I mean the new 3-year deal.
Kenny blamed Ozzie after every move he made this past offseason, but Kenny was the one who put the team together and destroyed the farm system, he needs to be held accountable.
it’s hard to imagine anyone who thought this team had a chance and with that payroll and what was given up, Kenny has to answer for it.
The deathwatch is on.
I agree with the South Side Sox writer who said, regardless of whether Ozzie asked for the roster construction, it falls on Kenny.
Assembling a team is the responsibility of a GM.
I can’t imagine it going over well if I failed to do my job well, then blamed one of my subordinates for doing it poorly for me.
Dont forget trading for Pierre; assuming 8 million over two years to one of the least valuable hitters in the history of the game – all to play him in one of the easiest positions on the field to fill!
Juan is one of those rare “talents” that can hit 300 and still be absolutely worthless to a club. Kenny, that was just dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb…
As a Dodger fan, that was a great deal. Yeah it was an idiotic move by Colletti to sign the guy, but finding someone to pay $8 million AND trade a guy in John Ely that has been HUGE for a battered back end of the rotation…priceless.
the dodgers are paying 8.5 of 10 million dollar salary… the Sox are paying Pierre 1.5 million of his contract. He is actually coming around hitting .311 in his last 10 games. I wouldn’t be concerned about Pierre. I am more concerned about guys like Quentin, Alexei and AJ.
Actually, Pierre’s salary is paid as follows:
2009 – $3MM Sox, $7MM LA
2010 – $5MM Sox, $3.5MM LA
Actually, Pierre’s salary is paid as follows:
2009 – $3MM Sox, $7MM LA
2010 – $5MM Sox, $3.5MM LA
“He is actually coming around hitting .311 in his last 10 games”
Yeah, with a .340 OBP and beyond pitiful .333 SLG. That’s a .674 OPS, a rate that bests only Yuniesky Betancourt’s dead last mark from last year.
See, now you know what I was talking about. Even when Pierre hits 300 he’s worthless. An OPS under 700 from a middle infielder is “get him off the field” territory – but Pierre is playing the single easiest position to field! Last season, only 5 full-time players accomplished sub-700. Yet for his career Pierre is now on pace to do it in 6 of his 11 seasons, and has a combined career mark of only .711.
Just pitiful…
the dodgers are paying 8.5 of 10 million dollar salary… the Sox are paying Pierre 1.5 million of his contract. He is actually coming around hitting .311 in his last 10 games. I wouldn’t be concerned about Pierre. I am more concerned about guys like Quentin, Alexei and AJ.
As a Dodger fan, that was a great deal. Yeah it was an idiotic move by Colletti to sign the guy, but finding someone to pay $8 million AND trade a guy in John Ely that has been HUGE for a battered back end of the rotation…priceless.
If the Nationals call up a healthy Strasburg, Wang, and Jordan Zimmermann that would be the equivalent of a late season trade for pitching…
If they trade for a bat I could see Kelly Johnson being a useful piece.
It would be funny to see the Nats trade Matt Capps for Kelly Johnson. That would actually be a very good deal in that each team would fill a major need. Still, each of these guys have been big parts of their teams so far and I’d be surprised to see either one traded.
It’s worth noting that Liriano’s fastball does not have more zip than ever. He’s still not throwing as hard as he did pre-Tommy-John.
Duly noted. The “article” compares 2009 and 2010 velocities. Liriano is still down rather significantly from 2006.
Duly noted. The “article” compares 2009 and 2010 velocities. Liriano is still down rather significantly from 2006.
Really, Jerry isn’t worried?
Then again, what do you expect him to say to the media.
I don’t think Williams lacks imagination and vision. I think he lacks *a* vision. Every year, you see Williams doing whatever seems like a fun idea in the moment, without a cohesive vision for the team. That’s his biggest flaw.
“Cubs GM Jim Hendry says he doesn’t have “one thought” in his mind”
The sentence should have just ended right there
It upsets me that the Pirates never seem to be doing anything about international free agents. They’re really high on getting as much talent through the draft, but they do virtually nothing when it comes to signing international free agents. Maybe none of them have the “plus speed” or “power arms” that Huntington is always looking for.
Ben, it is best to refer to Jose Bautista as Joey Bats. He likes that nickname more than his regular name.
Ben, it is best to refer to Jose Bautista as Joey Bats. He likes that nickname more than his regular name.
funny to point out wilson. obviously he is the leader on the list in MPH lost, but so would every reliever in a transition from the bullpen.
if you’re not throwing those 15-20 pitches harder than your 100-120 pitches, you aren’t excited enough about your job.
it happens every year when we see non playoff rotation starters come out of the bullpen throwing gas in the playoffs
funny to point out wilson. obviously he is the leader on the list in MPH lost, but so would every reliever in a transition from the bullpen.
if you’re not throwing those 15-20 pitches harder than your 100-120 pitches, you aren’t excited enough about your job.
it happens every year when we see non playoff rotation starters come out of the bullpen throwing gas in the playoffs
Sorry Mr. Peavy you aren’t going no where, We’ve waited to long for a true ace. Now that we have one your staying. Plus if we can dumb some of the players this year we can compete next year.
Classic.
It’s sad that the two biggest acquisitions in Peavy and Rios have both of them going from non-contending teams to a team trying and failing to content, especially with both of them showing signs of what gave them their large contracts.
Sorry Mr. Peavy you aren’t going no where, We’ve waited to long for a true ace. Now that we have one your staying. Plus if we can dumb some of the players this year we can compete next year.