EVIL~! alkeiper

No. Heilman had an unusually low Opponents' batting average last year, and that was bound to come up. What strikes me about Heilman is how some Met fans were convinced he was terrible based on his early exposure as a starter. Heilman's numbers this year are on the low end of what to expect from him. He's still league average at this point. I guess it's a roundabout way of saying yes, 2005 was a fluke. I think hitters have caught up to his stuff. He's good enough though that he'll get better than he's shown this year, and settle in somewhere between his 2005 and 2006 performances.

These threads always prove popular. With the dearth in quality analysis on television and radio these days, get your answers instead from a knowledgeable fan who has a reasonable idea of what he's talking about! Try to avoid questions such as "Will X make the postseason/World Series?" It's difficult to make predictions and sometimes my guess is as good as your's. Otherwise, any topic is fair game.

Yeah I saw that this morning, and almost posted the link. Glad they triggered my memory as to why I hated the guy so much. I'll never forget an episode of ESPN's Hotlist a year or two back when Brian Kenny had Reynolds and John Kruk on. Reynolds made a comment about someone being a great leadoff hitter because "they knew how to get on base." Kenny quickly pointed out the guy's OBP that year (which was abysmal, like below .300). Reynolds then makes some sarcastic comments about Kenny being "one of those guys" and saying a computer can't tell him anything about baseball. Then Kruk decides to make loud computer noises every time Kenny said something the rest of the interview. I though BK was going to kill somebody. I listened to an interview Mayne gave on XM Radio about a month ago. VERY knowledgeable about baseball and sabermetrics, and it shows when he hosts the Hotlist and has guests such as Rob Neyer and Joe Sheehan on his program.

It's fun to see some of those players once in awhile in AAA. You also catch some players on rehab from time to time. I saw Dmitri Young last week. For a big guy, he can really field his position at first.

Value for their teams aside, if you're Odalis Perez, wouldn't you rather pitch regularly for a bad team than sit in the doghouse of a good team. We're not talking about regular vs. role player here. I think Perez is a better pitcher than he's shown, and he'll rebound.

The LA Dodgers acquired RHP Elmer Dessens from the Kansas City Royals for Odalis Perez, Blake Johnson, Julio Pimental AND cash. The Royals got THREE pitchers for a reliever with a 4.50 ERA. If I'm the Phillies, there's no way I don't trade Jon Lieber and Cory Lidle in this market.

I saw Humberto Sanchez pitch a couple weeks ago. Good stuff, but still somewhat raw. He needs more seasoning.

The White Sox' current center fielder is hitting somewhere around .205. Acquiring Soriano would allow the Sox to move Podsednik to center field. That's a decent point, but the White Sox as a team lead the entire majors in runs scored, HR, RBI, and SLG, and are third in AVG and sixth in OBP. Offense is not the problem, despite Anderson being a black hole of suck in that lineup. Putting Soriano in left and Pods in Center is a defensive downgrade, and trading McCarthy weakens the pitching staff considerably. Considering they are in the bottom half of baseball in runs allowed and ERA, I would consider that a poor use of resources. Bottom half? The White Sox are 6th in the A.L. and 10th in the Majors in runs allowed. They're not where they were last year, but it's hardly a problem that's infesting their existence. What's more is that only three teams in the AL are really significantly better than the Sox in terms of preventing runs. There's not much available for pitching. The White Sox have internal options, and if the best way to improve the club is to add hitting, so be it.

I used to think Bowa was the problem with the Phillies. Then he got canned, Charlie Manuel took over and nothing changed. Dusty Baker is a problem, but he's not the reason the Cubs are bad. Quite simply, they have not constructed a Major League caliber lineup. Ronny Cedeno's batting average fueled career year fooled everyone into thinking he was a real prospect. The hitting's undisciplined, and there's no impact hitter besides Derrek Lee, who's been injured. A manager can only take you so far. Earl Weaver couldn't make decent hitters of this bunch.

The White Sox' current center fielder is hitting somewhere around .205. Acquiring Soriano would allow the Sox to move Podsednik to center field.

Especially given Fabio Castro has been acquired and since made two appearances in a month. Who did he piss off exactly? The only thing I can thing I think you can hope for is that they plan on trading at least one reliever (please move Cormier given the ridiculous price middle relief is fetching) and will then bring up a position player. Castro is a Rule V player, and just 21 years old. He's only on the roster because otherwise the Phils would have to offer him back to his original team. He's not going to pitch in any kind of pressure situation.

Something I haven't complained about yet. The Phillies are now carrying 13 pitchers. This is overkill to the worst degree. Is Rick White really so important to the franchise that we can't keep Sal Fasano around, or otherwise carry five bench players? The beauty of Chris Coste is that he can play the infield corners as well as catch. With just two catchers, Charlie Manuel will not play Coste anywhere else, for fear of gatting caught without a backup catcher in case Lieberthal gets hurt. Our only backup infielder is currently hitting .150, well below the Tomas Perez line.

Hawk was an announcer first, then GM, and then an announcer again. When Harrelson took over the White Sox, they had finished above .500 four of the last five seasons. Harrelson lasted one year. The White Sox lost 90 games in his year, and then lost 90 again the next season. As a bonus, he ran Tony LaRussa out of town.

Cutesy act with Denorfia? The kid's got a future. If he didn't, the Reds wouldn't have been able to trade Kearns. The smart thing in the long run might be to move Dunn to first, Griffey to a corner, and play both Denorfia and Freel in the outfield.

I bet Sal's Pals are going to be pissed. Fasano says he won't go to our AAA team in Scranton. I would've liked to see him there, but with Carlos Ruiz and Dusty Wathan, he still would have battled for playing time. Having watched Chris Coste the last couple years, I am absolutely thrilled that he locked down the backup playing job.

Yes, depending on the cash terms. A #1 prospect PLUS enough money to acquire another player is too tempting to pass up.

If you liked Rob Deer, you'll love Mike Hessman. Hessman is hitting .161 in AAA Toledo with 18 home runs, 34 walks and 87 strikeouts.

I think that approach is closer to right than wrong. First off, Bill Russell and his ilk dominated a league that had anywhere from 8-12 teams in its infancy. It was simply easier to dominate the game back then. The NBA today is harder to dominate, as more players compete from high school on up, and the teams adjust to face the caliber of competition.

No, that's precisely why I despise the franchise. As a kid growing up in the '80s when the Yankees sucked ass, their "fans" were few and far between, now you've got people out there who have "loved the team since birth" but only when they're winning titles. I've KNOWN people who were Mets fans back then who now swear on a Bible that they are diehard Yankees supporters and always have been. This is true of virtually any franchise in professional sports.

They got hosed, but not badly. Kearns isn't a big loss because they have Chris Denorfia ready to fill in. They got a decent haul, including four of the Nats' top prospects (they also got Brandon Watson via waivers). This could turn out well in the long run. Short term though, it may cost them the wild card.

Surprised this didn't get more attention. Oneonta beat Brooklyn in the NY-Penn League 6-1 yesterday, in 26 innings.

The article explained the Mets examined the market and found that there were no easily acquireable starters that were better options than Mike Pelfrey. The benefit of Abreu is that he is under contract yet for the 2007 season, with an option for 2008 that he would require to be picked up in order to waive his no trade clause. Abreu's contract isn't a tremendous burden. He still has All-Star ability and while his home run power has waned, he remains just as productive. He will be just 34 when his contract expires. As for the Mets' situation, they are third in least runs allowed behind the Padres (who benefit from a pitchers' park) and the Rockies (the FUCK?!). The Mets are also first in runs scored. They're in an odd situation in that barring some act of god, they are going to make the playoffs. No team in baseball is in as comfortable a situation. If they acquire Zito, they get marginally better in six games at most. Remember they won't need a fifth starter anyway. My gut tells me the trade won't happen though. A decent rule of thumb with trade rumors is that if it were such a good trade, they would have done it already. Rumors that last more than a week or two almost NEVER come true.

According to the article, ESPN is NOT shelving the phone. It's just an investment firm that thinks they should.

The Wickman deal is good for both sides. The Tribe has no use for an aging closer if they're out of the playoff hunt. Ramirez looks like a sleeper prospect, but the Braves already have Brian McCann and Jarrod Saltalamaccia. They can afford to trade some depth there. Jayson Stark reports an Abreu for Milledge deal is being discussed. If Abreu's dealt for a Top Ten prospect, I'd be ok with the deal.

I don't think the closers of that era were better or worse than today, just different. Managers have found that using relievers in shorter stints makes them more effective. I think two things hold back Gossage. One, he went 9-17 in a starting season in 1976, exposing his limitations. Second, he gave up two big home runs in clinching games against the Royals in 1980 and the Tigers in 1984. Those high profiles losses hurt his image. Before I continue, let me elaborate on the two home runs. The first occurred in game three of the 1980 ALCS. The Royals led the series 2-0, but the Yankees held a 2-1 lead going into the seventh. Gossage came in relief with a runner on, gave up a single, and then fed a fastball to George Brett who deposited it into the third deck. The Royals won the game and the series. George Brett never saw a fastball the rest of his career. The second came in game five of the 1984 World Series, with the Tigers holding a 3-1 series lead. The Tigers led 5-4 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Gossage walked the first batter, had the second reach on a FC sacrifice (both runners safe), and then Alan Trammell bunted the runners to second and third. Sparky Anderson held a mound conference, and Gossage insisted that he would pitch to Gibson with one out and first base open. Gibson hit a three run shot, sealing the series. Rivera's in, there is no doubt. Hoffman's borderline, but he's a guy who was very good for a long time. He was never especially dominate, at least no more than Armando Benitez or Keith Foulke. The difference is that Hoffman pitched a long time. The problem is that these pitchers have pitched VERY few innings relative to other Hall of Famers. Bruce Sutter will have the least innings pitched of any Hall of Famer when inducted, with 1,042. Hoffman has about 850. Rivera will have about 1,000 after this season, if you count the postseason.