Talking baseball

  • So, with the non-waiver trade deadline looming, here are some questions to contemplate.

    • Does the Dan Haren trade help the Angels down the stretch?
    • What needs do you foresee for the division contenders, and what player(s) do you think could potentially fill those needs?

    Discuss.

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  • Matt Garza!!!

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  • Five no-nos this year.

    Might be a record year at this pace.

  • Bring back steroids, pitching is boring.

    <runs and hides>

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  • Ray K (7/26/2010)


    So, with the non-waiver trade deadline looming, here are some questions to contemplate.

    • Does the Dan Haren trade help the Angels down the stretch?
    • What needs do you foresee for the division contenders, and what player(s) do you think could potentially fill those needs?

    Discuss.

    Dan Haren was the #1 pitcher in all of baseball in the first half of 2009. I think his one downside is that he's not a true horse ... he's just not going to be effective being used that way. He's been playing for a team that has the worst bullpen in the modern history of the game. That's not just stats, they're really that bad. So, for the last year he's been getting over-used because that's the only chance they've had to win. And the problem isn't that it's just another inning with an average number of pitches. It's another 1-2 innings in which he's not as effective and he's using more pitches and those tired pitches are the ones that really add up. Who knows, maybe getting knocked out early (literally) in his first Angels start will actually help him. My big question is how much he can recover now mid-season.

    Definitely for next year the Angles made an amazing trade. They got a top 15 pitcher for a #3-#4 starter and a pile of minor league garbage and they're only going to pay $6M a year more. Not sure why the D'backs were insistent on getting another #3-#4 (as they already have 4 of those), but it really limited their trade options. I was hoping the Braves would get Haren but they don't have a garbage starter to throw away other than Kawakami and he's making too much.

    └> bt



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  • bteraberry (7/27/2010)


    Ray K (7/26/2010)


    So, with the non-waiver trade deadline looming, here are some questions to contemplate.

    • Does the Dan Haren trade help the Angels down the stretch?
    • What needs do you foresee for the division contenders, and what player(s) do you think could potentially fill those needs?

    Discuss.

    Dan Haren was the #1 pitcher in all of baseball in the first half of 2009. I think his one downside is that he's not a true horse ... he's just not going to be effective being used that way. He's been playing for a team that has the worst bullpen in the modern history of the game. That's not just stats, they're really that bad. So, for the last year he's been getting over-used because that's the only chance they've had to win. And the problem isn't that it's just another inning with an average number of pitches. It's another 1-2 innings in which he's not as effective and he's using more pitches and those tired pitches are the ones that really add up. Who knows, maybe getting knocked out early (literally) in his first Angels start will actually help him. My big question is how much he can recover now mid-season.

    Definitely for next year the Angles made an amazing trade. They got a top 15 pitcher for a #3-#4 starter and a pile of minor league garbage and they're only going to pay $6M a year more. Not sure why the D'backs were insistent on getting another #3-#4 (as they already have 4 of those), but it really limited their trade options. I was hoping the Braves would get Haren but they don't have a garbage starter to throw away other than Kawakami and he's making too much.

    I haven't been following the NL that closely (I've been an AL fan my whole life), so I can't comment on how well Haren has been doing. I'm just wondering, with the Rangers romping ahead in the AL West, whether or not one pitcher will make a difference in that division.

    Speaking for my Yankees, our kryptonite has been our middle relief. We've had good starting pitching (although, with the injury to Pettitte and with A.J.'s inconsistency, it probably could be better), and, of course, we have Mo Rivera to close it out. But we've been losing a lot of games trying to bridge the starters to the closer. Joba Chamberlain is not lights out like he was a couple of years ago, and other guys like David Robertson and Chan Ho Park have struggled. If we could get someone to pitch the 7th and 8th innings, we'll be tough down the stretch. I understand that the Yanks asked Kansas City about Joakim Soria, but I don't know where that's gone, and I get the impression that the Royals don't want to part with him.

    Of course, I also recognize that Yankee haters will not have any sympathy for the Evil Empire, either! 😛

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  • Speaking for my Yankees, our kryptonite has been our middle relief.

    Ditto for the Giants. They could use a bat, too.

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  • The Rockies need a kick in the *ss. Finally a win.

  • The Twins are getting rested and starting to turn some guys (like Mauer and Span) around. This is good. They've slid Duensing across to the rotation and gotten good results there, plus a couple of guys have managed to straighten things out and this is also good. The Mariners are rolling into town tonight and that might even be good.

    But I'm less sanguine about that Ramos trade last night. I think Capps is perfectly adequate in the pen and will help as they sort through all the arms over the winter. But they traded very low on Ramos, and there's no reason on earth that they had to add another arm. Washington needed a good catching prospect so they should have been particularly interested in him. My only guess is that the Twins didn't think he could stay healthy or that his attitude might sour if he had to sit on the shelf in AAA any longer. Who knows.

    Overpaying for bullpen help makes a little sense for the Twins at this time, so it isn't the end of the world. I just think they'll end up having to enjoy this season and work hard at not watching Ramos' career over the next five years. It's just something you occasionally have to do when reaching for the brass ring.

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  • Usually the Mets completely give up at the end of August or the beginning of September. It's nice to see them get a head start on things this year.

    And is Oswalt to the Phillies really that big of a deal? Even 5 years ago it would have been fantastic, but he really hasn't looked very good to me this year. They still have the same issues on offence and in the bullpen. Will be interesting to watch that division and the AL East.

    └> bt



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  • Well the Rockies are doing slightly better.

    However I'm not. Played a double header yesterday, 1-5, BB. My season is going downhill.

  • Steve Jones - Editor (8/2/2010)


    Well the Rockies are doing slightly better.

    However I'm not. Played a double header yesterday, 1-5, BB. My season is going downhill.

    What are you hitting right now?

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  • Not sure. I've had a number of 1-2, 2-3, 3-3 days. I was at .400 a little over a month ago. Since then I'm sure I'm in the low .300s.

    At this point I'm just trying to survive. 3-4 games left for me and with sore ankles, knees, tight back, I'm not worrying too much. Right now I'm trying to limit things to playing 1st, 3rd, or RF.

  • How 'bout them Giants, eh Steve? j/k...should be a different story today against Jimenez. You going to any of the games?

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  • Those Giants suck!!!

    Though apparently not as much as the Rockies. I'd like to hit an afternoon game. Nights are busy with karate, kids stuff for now. Plus it's been raining most nights the last few weeks, not interested in a wet evening

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