Baseball thread No. VII

Apparently Toronto's manager. Is that the guy who said he fought in Vietnam?

 

No, that was the equally obscure Tim Johnson, I believe.

 

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/a...19&PHPSESSID=10982a08c4332a909a00d197b07208a2

Very interesting.  I'm still not convinced that Minaya is that much better a GM than he was when he ruined the Expos.  For all of the talk about how he attracts FAs, in every instance the Mets were by far the highest bidder, and the young core was there before he got there.

 

But not before expressing his displeasure that it was "the little people" -- the media -- and not the higher-ups who congratulated him on adopting a baby girl.

 

I may have missed something since all those numbers made my eyes glaze over, but if he's saying that the Mets should have gone with Mike Jacobs at first instead of trading for Carlos Delgado, he's just wrong. There's no way to measure the positive effect that Delgado has had on Carlos Beltran and to a lesser extent, David Wright. Also, who would you rather see coming up in a key situation this October -- Mike Jacobs or Carlos Delgado? Who cares if the Mets will find themselves overpaying guys like Delgado and Wagner after they start to decline? There's no salary cap and the franchise can afford to overpay later in order to win now.

 

To be fair, the Toronto media is known for being smaller than average. At least he didn't say midgets, eh?

 

Anyone with any inside knowledge care to shed any light on the Hillenbrand fiasco?

Seems odd all the way around.

 

I would understand it more if he wanted to escape, say, Pittsburgh. But Toronto has an outside shot to make the playoffs, and he's still getting paid. Sounds like wanted out, period, and got his wish.

 

Big win by the Reds tonight -- seven shutout innings by the bullpen.

Mother Nature should get credit for the win though.

 

Let me see if I understand you: The Red Sox won a game today. They out-pitched an opponent. They increased their A.L. East lead over the second place team to a game and a half. And we're criticizing them because they didn't score enough runs?

Okay. :

 

Some idiot who whined and cried so loud he eventually earned his release from a contending team. Only a few months from now when he's either out of baseball or playing for a last-place outfit will he realize the stupidity of what he did.

 

I've known people who have dealt with Shea Hillenbrand and they've said he's one of the biggest babies in the business.