Light the Hot Stove fires

His first year in the minors was 2001. This year was the first time he started the season in the majors (had only six starts in 2005, probably in September).

 

Sorry man but I disagree, unless you're trying to field a lineup comprised almost entirely of steroid users. (Especially if Chris' hunches are correct about 1B and CF)

The Orioles are light years away from contention. What does signing a 38-year-old money-obsessed pain in the ass do for them? The rumors have it that Tejada has been in shutdown mode for quite some time. That's all Tejada needs: A bad influence whispering in his ear about how everyone's trying to screw him. If I had any impressionable young players on either side of the ball, the last player I'd acquire this winter would be Sheffield.

 

Liriano's got a bad arm, not a bullet in his melon.

 

Sheff is so pissed at the Yankees right now, his main motivation is fucking them over any way he can. No way the Yanks let him end up in Boston, but there is an outside chance they might let him go to Baltimore. He's a pain, yes, but he's still a good hitter. Besides, the only place the O's are young is at pitcher. Since I don't believe Daniel Cabrerra can even speak English, I think he's probably safe from Sheffield's evil charms.

Also, everyone keeps saying Tejada is in shut down mode, yet he hit .330 with 24 HRs, 100 RBIs, and had the highest on base percentage of his career (.379). His slugging percentage was almost the same (.498) as when he won the MVP (.508). His OPS was higher this year (.877) than it was ever single year in Oakland. And yet he has the worst protection in the major leagues for a quality hitter. Oh, and to boot, he had 19 errors, tied for the lowest mark in his career, and hasn't missed a game in six years.

I'm not a stats guy, but those hardly look like shutdown numbers to me. I don't care if he's four years older than he says he is, or if he keeps showing up late to the clubhouse. He's still a darn good player. And for the Orioles, there are almost no options. People will not play there. Sheffield will. They need to do something other than continue to insult their fanbase.

I'm a Sox fan anyway, so don't really give a damn either way. But you should be in favor of this for comedy's sake alone. Angelos and Sheff bitching at one another in the press two years from now? A columnist's gold mine.

 

Angelos doesn't care about people who break the law. He doesn't even care about people who get caught breaking the law (as long as the lawyers fees are paid).

Baltimore is the perfect destination for steroids guys.

Hell - they may even bring back Kevin Brown.

 

look the o's suck. they may be young but they are not good. especially in that division. there is NO way they will finish any better than 4th place. its ashame to they have one of the best stadiums and a great fan base. tejada is NOT washed up. the only problem is, especially now that roberts is off the roids, other than tejada they don't have one single above average player at any position.

 

On Back To the Future III, Doc Brown threw coils into the locomotive stove. They made the fire burn really hot.

 

Tell that to Sidney Ponson.

 

Recent rumors aside, I don't think the Yankees will let Sheffield go to Baltimore, or any other AL team for that matter. Stick his whiny ass in the NL, preferably with a team that isn't playing the Yankees next year so that there are no "Sheffield wants to stick it to the Yanks" stories in the days leading up to the games against the Yankees. If he goes to Baltimore, that same storyline would play out six damn times.

And you're right: Tejada's unhappiness has yet to manifest itself on the field. But if he's still unhappy in Balto, still interested in pushing the boundaries and living by his own rules and still "distracted" by other issues, then adding another combative player to the mix is not a recipe for tranquility.

And how much longer will his batting average make up for a decrease in power (his 61 XBH and 24 HR this year were his fewest since 1999)? If I'm the Orioles, and I've already napalmed bridges with all but my most devoted fans (hi Hokie!), what do I have to lose by trading Tejada and staying away from Sheffield? People are already apathetic. And Tejada and Sheffield, neither of whom are likely to see an increase in production (barring, of course, the "discovery" of the "fountain of youth") will not be in Baltimore by the time the Orioles are competitive in that division. May as well feed the fans another load of rebuilding bullshit.

Oh and you're completely right: Sheffield in Baltimore would be one of the great train wrecks of our time. Completely entertaining in a trashy soap opera kinda way.

 

Some interesting names I've read might be headed to St. Louis: Luis Gonzalez, Mark Loretta and Woody Williams.

All three have been nice players in recent years, but are getting close to retirement and may not have much left.

 

At least they can replace him with a $15M a year pitcher.....

Oh.... they can't.

 

It's probably a good thing they can't replace him with a $15 million pitcher, because they would likely get the same production from Garza, Perkins or another one of their prospects but at a much more reasonable price.