Baseball Thread IV

[broadway joe]

No of course I don't want Kaz Matsui on my team, but the reception he gets from management and fans makes him out to be Armando Benitez crossbred with John Franco circa 1990-1998 crossbred with Roger Cedeno circa 2002-03.

He wasn't very good and he wasn't very healthy. But he didn't put a gun to the Mets' heads and say "Give me eight million a year." those jackals, like usual, were a year late and a player short when they said "Hey! This Matsui thing worked out well for the team that does everything right! We gotta get us one of them even though we have an all-world prospect at shortstop!"

He got hurt then had to switch positions. Not like he mailed it in for 2 1/3 years.

I'm not asking Willie to just play the guy and blow sunshine up his ash. But there's no reason either to kick him on his way out by saying "I wasn't here when he was signed." We know. He's not one of your guys.

It's not really fair to Willie to take that one sentence and say he kicked Kaz when he was down. Willie said a lot of less critical things about him, including that injuries were the biggest reason for his problems in NY. He didn't do or say anything overly harsh as far as Matsui is concerned. I don't really get all the disdain toward Randolph around here. His team is 15 games over .500 with a healthy lead over the almighty Braves even though he has only two consistent starting pitchers and Beltran has missed significant time. Hard to make the case that he sucks as a manager when you look at the standings.

 

[spnited]

Things you must understand about what is being said here, broadway:

1. Willie, in my opinion, is not a very good manager but he has a  good team that seems to play hard for him and seems to be getting better by the week, so he is doing something right.
2. Yes, he did go easy on Kaz.
3. BYH, deckhead that he is, hates all things Mets and Yankess--meaning he has double the reason to hate Willie. So you can just ignore anything the deckhead has to say.

 

[BYH]

It's not really fair to Willie to take that one sentence and say he kicked Kaz when he was down. Willie said a lot of less critical things about him, including that injuries were the biggest reason for his problems in NY. He didn't do or say anything overly harsh as far as Matsui is concerned. I don't really get all the disdain toward Randolph around here. His team is 15 games over .500 with a healthy lead over the almighty Braves even though he has only two consistent starting pitchers and Beltran has missed significant time. Hard to make the case that he sucks as a manager when you look at the standings.

They're winning that division in spite of Willie. It'll show sooner than later.

Speaking of sooner than later, his tensions with Billy Wagner will boil over too.

This is 2006. It's not about the manager anymore, so step off the top step, Willie. I get tired of hearing a guy who never managed in the minors prattling on about his way and his guys. You're such an old-fashioned hardash, why didn't you find it worth your time to crawl your way up the chain? Same goes for Joe Girardi.

PS: Spnited remembers when he had to push the horse and buggy uphill both ways to get to his friend Abner Doubleday's field. ;D ;D <----------forking deckhead!!!!!!

 

[DyePack]

I used to hate all things Yankees. So I guess I was half a deckhead.

Now I'm just entertained by the lineups the team fields. Plus, I think ESPN has done a 1984 on me. I want more Yankees and Red Sox. I love Big Brother!

 

[buckweaver]

I think this has been said before here, but it's true:

Willie Randolph does not know how to make a double switch. I'm not commenting on his other managerial skills; it's just an observation. Willie Randolph does not understand what must take place in order for his team to make a double switch. There were at least three occasions last week where it was a prime situation to make a double switch in the middle of the order, including once in L.A. subbing Matsui in for that white boy he had at second base (I was at that game.) Instead, he pinch hit for the pitcher with Matsui an inning later and replaced him with another pitcher.

Can anyone tell me if Randolph has ever made a double switch this year? If so, I bet he's done it less than five times.

 

[Hank_Scorpio]

What, you don't think trading him and some other guy for Matt Herges was a good idea?

I keep saying it. Forget the money. If not for pure stupidity, this team could have Chris Young to lead that young pitching staff, Chris Shelton at first base and Aramis Ramirez at third. I know Ramirez to the Cubs was a salary dump, but it was an idiotic one.

Hell, Brian Giles was a salary dump the same season, but they got actual prospects for him -- Jason Bay and Oliver Perez. Even if Perez never straightens out again, it was a great trade. To see a player like Bay and a ballpark like PNC wasted on that franchise is truly sad.

Shelton wasn't traded. He was a Rule 5 pickup by the Tigers. But yea, he could still be a Pirate if they were smart enough to hang on to him.

 

[outofplace]

What, you don't think trading him and some other guy for Matt Herges was a good idea?

I keep saying it. Forget the money. If not for pure stupidity, this team could have Chris Young to lead that young pitching staff, Chris Shelton at first base and Aramis Ramirez at third. I know Ramirez to the Cubs was a salary dump, but it was an idiotic one.

Hell, Brian Giles was a salary dump the same season, but they got actual prospects for him -- Jason Bay and Oliver Perez. Even if Perez never straightens out again, it was a great trade. To see a player like Bay and a ballpark like PNC wasted on that franchise is truly sad.

Shelton wasn't traded. He was a Rule 5 pickup by the Tigers. But yea, he could still be a Pirate if they were smart enough to hang on to him.

I never said Shelton was traded. I said they move in which the Pirates let him go was stupid. They left Shelton unprotected because they decided to save money by protecting only 37 players on their 40-man roster. Pennywise and baseball dumb

Arroyo wasn't traded, either. They just let him go.

I just lumped those four together because they could all easily still be playing for the Pirates.

 

[nafselon]

I think this has been said before here, but it's true:

Willie Randolph does not know how to make a double switch. I'm not commenting on his other managerial skills; it's just an observation. Willie Randolph does not understand what must take place in order for his team to make a double switch. There were at least three occasions last week where it was a prime situation to make a double switch in the middle of the order, including once in L.A. subbing Matsui in for that white boy he had at second base (I was at that game.) Instead, he pinch hit for the pitcher with Matsui an inning later and replaced him with another pitcher.

Can anyone tell me if Randolph has ever made a double switch this year? If so, I bet he's done it less than five times.

You're way late coming to that argument. It's been well documented. He does it on rare occasion, but Cubs fans will tell you it's better than Dusty who double switches every time he replaces a pitcher whether he needs to or not and apparently that's very annoying. Once again the Mets are 38-23 so double switching might be overrated.

No of course I don't want Kaz Matsui on my team, but the reception he gets from management and fans makes him out to be Armando Benitez crossbred with John Franco circa 1990-1998 crossbred with Roger Cedeno circa 2002-03.

I'm not asking Willie to just play the guy and blow sunshine up his ash. But there's no reason either to kick him on his way out by saying "I wasn't here when he was signed." We know. He's not one of your guys.

Kaz wasn't too far off that crossbred group. He deserved what he got...fork Kaz Matsui.

I do agree that Randolph-Wagner tension is a bit worrisome but Wagner is being a bench about it. He doesn't want to go in this situation, he wants to go in here, not there, he wanted to pitch last night not tonight...Just shut the fork up and pitch when they ask and try not to blow the forking game.

 

[Trey Beamon]

What, you don't think trading him and some other guy for Matt Herges was a good idea?

I keep saying it. Forget the money. If not for pure stupidity, this team could have Chris Young to lead that young pitching staff, Chris Shelton at first base and Aramis Ramirez at third. I know Ramirez to the Cubs was a salary dump, but it was an idiotic one.

Hell, Brian Giles was a salary dump the same season, but they got actual prospects for him -- Jason Bay and Oliver Perez. Even if Perez never straightens out again, it was a great trade. To see a player like Bay and a ballpark like PNC wasted on that franchise is truly sad.

Shelton wasn't traded. He was a Rule 5 pickup by the Tigers. But yea, he could still be a Pirate if they were smart enough to hang on to him.

I never said Shelton was traded. I said they move in which the Pirates let him go was stupid. They left Shelton unprotected because they decided to save money by protecting only 37 players on their 40-man roster. Pennywise and baseball dumb

Arroyo wasn't traded, either. They just let him go.

I just lumped those four together because they could all easily still be playing for the Pirates.

Good points, outofplace.

If you remember the Giles deal, the Pirates actually prefered Xavier Nady, but "settled" for Bay.

What makes the Young deal even worse is the Bucs cut Herges, who had a great spring numbers, soon after he was acquired. Aside from Shelton, the Bucs lost four others in the '04 Rule 5, just to keep scrubs like Mike Lincoln and Joe Biemel on the roster.

And, oh yeah, they converted John VanBenschothen, the NCAA home run leader, into a pitcher. A year later, they drafted Bryan Bullington No. 1 overall, well ahead of B.J. Upton, Prince Fielder, Nick Swisher and Scott Kazmir. That same day, Littlefield projected Bullington's ceiling as a "number three starter." Uh...

Just a clueless organiztion that never seems to learn from its mistakes.

 

[Evil Bastard (aka Chris_L)]

What's up with Jon Garland and his 6.19 ERA? Is this a case of a player getting complacent after getting a big contract (3-years $29 million) or was Garland just pitching over his head last year and this year the pendulum swinging in the opposite direction? I'm guessing that Garland leading the AL in HR allowed (19) can't be helpful

 

[Fenian_Bastard]

BYH --
So, do you suppose that the Mets would be satisfied if Randolph gets the same results as, say, Cito Gaston did, just to name anothher guy who baseball people told me couldn't manage, but who seems to have the jewelry anyway?

 

[pallister]

Garland peaked last year. He's a 12- to 15-win guy. He's not a plus-6 ERA guy, but he's not as good as last year would suggest. He was barely over .500 last year after his 8-0 start.