Prince of New York

Team Meetings Work Brilliantly...If The Next Day's Starter Is Any Good

2008-07-04T22:34:09Z

    Smart managers tend to try and coincide a team meeting/explosion with when their best pitcher is scheduled to start the next day to present the illusion that the meeting "sparked" something. The Yankees had their team meeting last night in which it was reported that not only manager Joe Girardi spoke, but the coaches and Johnny Damon and team captain Derek Jeter did as well. If the Yankees had won today, it would have been perceived that the meeting made a difference. That was undone because they had a journeyman pitcher starting the game and proving why he's a journeyman; why he's a pitcher who makes a living at Triple A and is a useful fill-in starter, but not someone a team with designs on a championship wants to count on to stop a losing streak.
    This isn't to denigrate Rasner in any way because the man gives everything he has; it's just that what he has is so limited when facing a lineup like that of the Red Sox that it's unlikely he's going to be able to hold them down unless he's nearly perfect. The homer by Mike Lowell was a prime example of a good idea for a pitch, a decent location for that pitch, but an inability to execute that pitch. In the fifth inning with the score tied at three and two runners on base, Rasner threw an inside fastball to Lowell; Lowell, the experienced hitter that he is, knows that Rasner's fastball doesn't have enough velocity to blow the ball by him on the inside part of the plate, so he has full coverage of the outside corner and is able to adjust to that inside fastball by collapsing his forearms and still has enough power to get the ball out of the park. This is the problem a guy with limited ability like Rasner has; he must be perfect and when he's not, he gets pounded.
     When he was recalled in early May, the Yankees pitching staff was in shambles; both Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes had fallen on their faces and they were desperate for someone, anyone who could give them some innings. Rasner was exactly what they needed in five of his first six starts; since then, the big league hitters have caught up to him and are raking him all over the place. He's one of those pitchers who will always have a job because he's a professional and knows how to pitch, but won't be an important member of a pitching staff or even a full-time big leaguer because he doesn't have the tools. The team meeting will be seen not to have worked, but that has nothing to do with anything; the Yankees lost because they didn't have a pitcher on the mound who was able to fulfill his end of the bargain and keep the team in the game. Team meeting or not, a lack of ability is not something a pep talk will be able to fix.

Decision Time Is Looming For The Yankees

2008-07-04T02:02:04Z

Red Sox 7-Yankees 0:

    Even the most hardcore, ardent and irrationally arrogant Yankee fan has to be concerned by what he's seeing from this team. The argument will naturally be that they're still within striking distance of the Red Sox and the Rays are a young and inexperienced challenger without the pennant race experience of a team like the Yankees. The major concern right now should be that they're not doing the little things to win games. The Rangers beat them two out of three and would have swept them if Rangers manager Ron Washington hadn't put an ill-equipped and inexperienced rookie to pitch in relief; the Red Sox came into Yankee Stadium reeling from a sweep at the hands of the Rays and five straight losses overall and manhandled the Yankees "big game" pitcher in Andy Pettitte as Jon Lester dominated them easily. They're in serious trouble if this continues.There will also be references to the Yankees teams of years past that came back from stunning deficits because of their experience fortitude and...their manager. That's one of the keys that will determine whether or not the team is going to go on a run to the playoffs.
    Joe Torre and his calm, confident and historically successful demeanor is no longer there; Joe Girardi is and despite Girardi's impressive managerial attributes, he's still very inexperienced with only a year and a half as a manager at any level and no real success other than a surprising 78-84 with a Marlins team that was expected to lose 100 games. (With each passing day that a similar Marlins team plays well under Fredi Gonzalez, Girardi's accomplishment becomes less and less impressive.) Torre always had his veteran cachet and championships to fall back on; Girardi doesn't. Another important thing that Torre had that Girardi may not have is even more important to a team trying to rebound from a slow start----personnel.
    This is quite possibly the weakest Yankee team in recent memory top-to-bottom. Their starting rotation is short due to the injury to Chien-Ming Wang and even when Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy were pitching, both looked like they were inches away from being sent back to the minors. Their bench is atrocious and their bullpen, other than Mariano Rivera, is filled with journeymen and youngsters. Players they were counting on like Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera haven't done their part and Derek Jeter is starting to show the age in a player who is in his mid-thirties and plays clean. Even with that, their lineup is formidable, but not formidable enough to make up for guys like Darrell Rasner and Dan Giese being part of the starting rotation; or for Joba Chamberlain's strict pitch count that precludes him from pitching longer that five or six innings in most of his games. It's always been dangerous to count out the Yankees when they've had mid-season struggles and large deficits to overcome, but this might be the year that they finally do miss the playoffs because not only are they short on talent, but there's a hungry Rays team that isn't going away.
    The Yankees still have their financial advantage and they're lucky in that the Wild Card is there for the taking if they have a hot streak. Teams that were expected to be in contention----the Indians, Mariners and Blue Jays----have fallen back, so the Yankees still have that possibility very available to them; but what are they going to do? GM Brian Cashman was reluctant to deal any of his young prospects to try and get Johan Santana, so how's it going to look if he reverses course and gets a lesser pitcher for an equal or greater package than what the Mets gave up to get Santana?
    There will be pitching available. The Mariners will likely be perfectly willing to move Les Miserables, Erik Bedard, but will Cashman want to bring Bedard (standoffish and nasty with the media and even teammates; let's see him try his attitude with the New York media) into his clubhouse? Bedard is starting to appear to be the epitome of the old football term, "coach killer". Would he be worth what it would take to get him? Presumably the likes of Melky Cabrera and a young pitcher or two? How about the reeling Braves and Tim Hudson? Would Cabrera and Robinson Cano get that done? Would Cashman be willing to do it? Or possibly Roy Oswalt? Then there are the massive risks like Rich Harden; would Cashman ante up to get the ultra-talented and ultra-fragile righty who's going to be traded? Or maybe a guy who'll go out there and leave his guts on the mound like Joe Blanton; perhaps even the Reds would be willing to deal Aaron Harang for a massive package of youngsters.
    The Yankees are smart enough to have known that this was going to be a year in transition for them and that the young pitchers were going to experience growing pains. I saw Kennedy last season and wasn't impressed even with all the propaganda; I felt Hughes would contribute his 12 wins and Chamberlain would be solid in whatever role he was placed; but Wang was going to have to win his 17-19 games; Pettitte was going to have to come up big in games like tonight; and Wang's injury and Pettitte's loss tonight leaves the Yankees wondering what to do next. Mike Mussina can't possibly be expected to pitch as well in the second half as he did in his surprising and resurgent first half; what are they going to do? Will they bite the bullet and surrender a package similar to that they refused to part with to get Santana on a lesser pitcher? Or will they take the heat; sleep in the bed they made and hope everything works out? That's a question they're going to have to answer within the next few weeks because as the calender turns, there's not the guaranteed spot in the playoffs, nor the weak teams in their division to brutalize. There are deals to be made for immediate help; will they make them?

Does anyone care about Roger Clemens's DNA at this point?

I get the impression that people had completely forgotten the whole Roger Clemens fiasco and moved onto the actual doings on the field, but now there's the story asserting that Clemens's DNA will be found on drug paraphernalia provided by trainer Brian McNamee. Does anyone even care at this point? Does the point have to be proven that Clemens was lying in front of congress? To Mike Wallace? To everyone? All this will do is dig Clemens's baseball grave another foot deeper; any further and he'll almost have completed a journey to the center of the earth. Maybe the Mole People or the C.H.U.D. will believe him because no one up here does anymore.

Was It Hank Or Was It The Rangers Bullpen?

2008-07-03T16:52:38Z

Yankees 18-Rangers 7:

Hank Steinbrenner will undoubtedly think that his demands for more offense had something to do with the 18 runs the Yankees scored, but it had more to do with the Rangers bullpen than any fear the players had of the Baby Boss. I kept flipping back and forth from this game to the other games and that seventh inning was interminable. The main culprit out of the Rangers bullpen was converted outfielder Warner Madrigal. Madrigal was all over the place and looked lost, which considering he's only been pitching since 2006, is completely understandable. For a Yankees offense that had been so terrible recently, beggars can't be choosers, but if Hank or anyone else thinks that this is the opening to the floodgates of the Yankees offensive powerhouse, they should probably think again. A good question would be why Rangers manager Ron Washington chose to put Madrigal in that situation with a 7-6 lead and a pretty good chance of sweeping the Yankees.

Scott Rolen or Troy Glaus?

Who would the Blue Jays rather have right now? Would they have been better off keeping a motivated Troy Glaus, who has a player option at the end of this year and is desperate to produce to get another, perhaps his last, big contract? Or would they rather have Scott Rolen, who (along with the years remaining on his bloated contract) was supposed to bring "intangibles" and "hard-nosed play" but has only brought his declining production and injuries?
Glaus is hitting well and if he opts out of his contract may be putting himself on the Mets radar as a possible reasonably priced option at first base next year. Rolen plays hard, there's no question about that, but the injuries have taken their toll on his performance and the Blue Jays can't be happy with what he's providing for them in relation to Glaus with the contract obligations factored in. This was not a smart trade for the Blue Jays in part because they did the Cardinals a favor by getting Rolen out of Tony La Russa's sight and in part because he's a shell of what he once was, but they'll be paying him a lot of money in the coming years.

Rockies 8-Padres 1:

I guess the Padres reached their run quota for the week on Monday when they scored 15 and decided to put the bats away. All kidding aside, they'd better start making their moves quickly because Randy Wolf has been getting blasted and the veterans for whom they might get some value----Brian Giles, Greg Maddux, Trevor Hoffman----are aging and are seeing their skills decline by the day. This season is lost and not dealing the dead weight (Khalil Greene included) is going to hinder the organization even more than they're stinginess and insistence on going with shaky veterans has hindered them already.

Phillies 7-Braves 3:

Amid all the ridicule directed towards the Mets, the Braves have been just as bad and as unlucky in their veteran players health and free agent signings. It's an interesting question as to what they're going to do because they're sort of contenders in a league where everyone's one hot streak away from leaping into first place, but they, like the Mets, don't look very impressive.
They're not going to be able to retain Mark Teixeira and they have to start thinking about what the team might look like without John Smoltz and Tom Glavine (although Glavine has been on the mound so rarely this year that it's like he never even returned). It would take some guts to do it, but would the Braves, if they continue on their current road, listen to offers for Tim Hudson? It looks bleak and with the core of the team either injury-prone (Chipper Jones); injured (Glavine and Smoltz); underachieving (Jeff Francouer); and playing with one eye on free agency (Teixeira), they might have to strongly consider moving forward and replenishing the organization rather than playing for a hopeless cause. The talent just may not be there for the Braves.

Brewers 4-Diamondbacks 3:

For the way he's saved their season, Salomon Torres deserves consideration for the All Star game. Without him solidifying the closer's role, the Brewers may already have begun a sell-off and be playing for a new manager.

Theater Of The Bizarre, An Apology And Directing Anger In The Appropriate Direction

2008-07-03T12:51:32Z

I don't get angry over nothing, but I may have lost my temper and directed it's contents in the wrong direction. I'm a bit confused over the comment on my duplicate blog----Censorship Is For The Gutless . A comment was posted under the name "Ian Smithson":

Ian Smithson said...

I've never deleted a comment from my blog, nor asked anyone to delete a comment. As for why someone deleted yours, I would have to see the comment before hazarding a guess. But it's possible that we've got a policy about comments including links to blogs. -robneyer

It says RobNeyer at the conclusion, so if that is truly Neyer who wrote the comment and didn't delete my comment, I have to apologize to Neyer, so I apologize for assuming he was the one who deleted the content and for exploding.
The true object of my anger is apparently ESPN, who has allowed me to comment and leave my blog link before, but either didn't like the content or didn't want the link, or both. Either way, I'll have more on ESPN in a later blog (including the condescending context of their Email to me after I complained about the deletion). As for right now, if that's really Rob Neyer aka Ian Smithson, I again apologize.

Censorship Is For The Gutless

2008-07-02T23:08:13Z

     I've written this blog since May of 2006 and there has been one----ONE----comment I've deleted in that time. That one comment consisted of someone who cussed in about ten of the twelve words he wrote in what was mostly a nonsensical string of epithets. I don't believe in censorship even if someone dislikes, disagrees or even launches into a personal attack against me. It's a shame that other, more prominent (for whatever reason) writers don't feel the same way.
    In what was probably a fit of pique, I'd had just about enough of the relentless promotion and defense of Paul DePodesta by Rob Neyer, so I commented on his blog. The comment, non-abusive and pointed, wondered why Neyer so insistently defended DePodesta when he was at the helm of the Dodgers and basically took a championship contender and systematically dismantled it. (And as for the commenter who uses the Dodgers making the playoffs in DePodesta's first season as a validation for the former GM, the Dodgers were 60-42 with the roster he inherited and 33-27 after he made a series of ill-fated maneuvers that started the downfall of a team that was well-built to compete for a World Series title. That's fact.) Today, DePodesta went on in his own blog about how the Padres had signed a bunch of Latin American players. Never once has Neyer mentioned how DePodesta has had a strong hand in the massive train wreck known as the 2008 San Diego Padres (33-52 as of this writing), and he's still promoted as a possible GM in the future.
    My comment on Neyer's blog asked if he was kidding and if he'd noticed the disastrous Dodgers tenure or the nightmare currently in production in San Diego. I then linked my blog. The comment was deleted. There was not one disrespectful word or any questionable language used in the comment, therefore there can be only two reasons for the deletion; either one is not allowed to disagree with Neyer's assessments about his favorite former GM, who is an inept executive once he leaves the protective nuzzle of Billy Beane, or he didn't want me linking my blog after the comment. That will be the excuse for the deletion I would presume, but that alone could have been removed without removing the comment, so you tell me what the reason for the censorship is.
    In the end, it's his blog and he can do what he wants, but if this is the way he conducts himself, and I were ESPN, I would seriously reconsider why I'm paying him for his work because censorship is not part of the ideals of this country and it's made worse when that censorship is in reference to the National Pastime. If I were Rob Neyer I'd be ashamed of myself, but anyone who deletes a comment as he did has no shame to begin with.

*Note: All comments, pro and con, are welcome here without prejudice.

It's July And It's Enough Already

2008-07-02T12:26:49Z

Rangers 3-Yankees 2:

    The Yankees can't continue to play the "new regime/young players" card forever. The Red Sox are going to have their 95 wins at the end of the season and the Rays aren't going away, so the time for the Yankees to continually put their hands up and say, "patience, patience" to their increasingly unruly and disenchanted fans is about up.
    The differences between the Yankees teams in years past and this one is stark. Joe Girardi, despite all of his seriousness, commitment, impressive vocabulary and history as a winner is still a manager in his second big league season; he has a lot to prove. The young pitching that was supposed to be the hallmark of the new Yankees is either on the disabled list (Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy) or being nursed along (Joba Chamberlain); the lineup, which was supposed to make up for the callow pitching staff, has been hamstrung by the slumping Robinson Cano and Melky Cabrera, and the injured Hideki Matsui and Jorge Posada. The bullpen has been untrustworthy and the Yankees aura is missing. Teams don't seem intimidated when they're walking into Yankee Stadium; they don't seem impressed by the Yankees financial power; they're not panicking in the late innings and blowing games; and it's enough already.
    Those that are counting on a similar blazing hot streak as the team experienced under Joe Torre following slow starts in the past may be in for a rude awakening. Girardi still has to prove that he can right the ship when the leaks are springing up all over; the young pitchers have to prove they belong and can pick up for their injured ace in Chien-Ming Wang; and they have to start beating teams that they've consistently fattened their record upon----but they're not. They're losing pitcher's duels to teams like the Rangers who don't have any pitching; they're seen to be turning the corner when they're beating teams that are slumping (the Astros) or are just plain bad (the Padres), but then they fall back into the mediocre bunch they've been all season and we still hear the apologists stating with more desperation than confidence, "the Yankees are gonna be in the playoffs" as if it's their divine right. It's not. They have to win some games.
    It's July; their reputation for overcoming adversity may have flown to Los Angeles along with Torre and if that's the case, then they'd better make some moves fast to improve their current roster because believe it or not, there's not an unlimited amount of time for the team to right themselves; more importantly, they might not have the personnel to do it either.

Rays 3-Red Sox 1:

    There's been talk that the Rays may jump into the sweepstakes to try and get a starting pitcher for the stretch run and C.C. Sabathia's name has been the most prominently mentioned. They have the prospects to do it, but a young team like the Rays that seems to have a chemistry and some magic working (who could possibly have expected the heretofore automatic out Gabe Gross to show up and provide so many clutch hits?) doesn't want to start moving too fast without weighing all of the pros and cons of such a move.
    Sabathia is a rental because the Rays aren't going to shell out the money he's going to want to keep him; they'd have to give up a chunk of prospects to get him and they might be better suited to make smaller, more intangible maneuvers (Kevin Millar and Chad Bradford for example) rather than making the big splash. Their young pitching has adapted well to the attention their receiving; their veteran relievers have performed up to their best-case scenario expectations and they score plenty of runs. Instead of getting Sabathia, they might be better served to bring up Jeff Niemann or David Price to slot into the rotation rather than an impending free agent like Sabathia.
    Their offense isn't going to be their problem----Carlos Pena has a hot streak due any day now----and they've done pretty well so far with their young starters; if they're going to make a bold move, they'd probably be better off supplementing their bullpen because Troy Percival is about to turn 39 and one wrong move away from being out for the season given his injury history. Huston Street is probably available for the right price; or they could go to a team like the Padres and see if they'd be willing to move Trevor Hoffman (he's been atrocious this season, but a pennant race and change of scenery might give him an adrenaline boost); there are better and cheaper options available than Sabathia; and more importantly, they don't want to start messing around when they're playing so well, plus the starting rotation isn't in need of a desperation rental who hasn't been that great in the playoffs anyway.

Phillies demote Brett Myers:

I probably wouldn't have accepted this assignment if I were Myers for a few reasons; most prominently, he took one for the team last season by moving to the bullpen and potentially sacrificed his own career to help carry the Phillies to the division title; then the Phillies found a closer in Brad Lidge and moved Myers back into the starting rotation. Pitching coach Rich Dubee is blaming the 3-9 record and overall terrible performance on a lack of confidence and out of whack delivery, but it could be that the switch from the rotation to the bullpen and back has affected Myers more than anyone realizes or wants to admit. Starting requires stamina like running a marathon; pitching out of the bullpen requires resilience and something similar to a quick-burst sprint.
Now they're sending Myers to Triple A when it might be more appropriate and less embarrassing if they took the course other teams have taken with struggling veteran pitchers and sent them to extended spring training to work out the kinks without having to endure the mental stigma involved with a demotion. What makes it worse is that Myers did what he was asked to help the team and they're treating him as if the 3-9 record is his fault and his fault alone, but the Phillies are just as, if not more, responsible because of the way they've jerked Myers around. Sending him to Triple A may help, but there were better ways to handle the situation and the individual.

Ichiro The Overrated; Will The Real Brian Bannister Please Stand Up?

2008-07-01T13:31:58Z

Ichiro the overrated:

    Is a singles hitter who doesn't hit for much power as valuable and as important a piece in a team's lineup as a guy who's going to singlehandedly produce more runs? Ichiro Suzuki is consistently referred to as one of baseball's brightest stars, but his results and off-field self-importance don't back up the idea that such a player should receive that designation. What exactly does he do that couldn't be replicated by another singles hitter who doesn't hit for power? That Ichiro appears to choose not to try to hit the ball out of the ballpark more than he does shouldn't enter into the equation; for the money he's being paid and that the recently disclosed information that it was Ichiro's displeasure with former Mariners manager Mike Hargrove that was a major factor in Hargrove's stunning resignation as the Mariners were streaking into contention last season are putting the player's value into question. Now, after Hargrove's replacement John McLaren was fired, Ichiro decided unilaterally that he wanted to move from center field back to right field regardless of the team's needs; how much more is this team supposed to take from a player whose results indicate that he's overrated?
    Ichiro has the power and ability to hit 25+ homers a year, but he'd rather beef up his batting average and hit totals instead of doing more to help his team win. For a guy who's averaged 228 hits a year, one would think his OBP would be higher than it is; one would think he'd drive in a few more runs along the way; one would think that he'd be a more useful player; but he isn't. And now, with the revelations of Ichiro's demanding nature off the field in making the Mariners choose between a manager who'd very nearly won two World Series with the Indians and had the Mariners in contention for the first time in years and insisting that he move back to right field, he has to be examined more closely in questioning whether all of this aggravation is worth it.
    Baseball-reference.com has comparisons of players to other players with similar numbers. Ichiro is constantly mentioned as a "future Hall of Famer" because of his ability to hit singles, but in looking at the players to whom he's compared there isn't one who's even close to being a Hall of Famer. Ralph Garr? Bake McBride? Mickey Rivers? Ron LeFlore? Were any of these players big enough stars that they'd be able to get away with making the demands that Ichiro makes and gets away with? The Mariners would be better off with a player like Freddy Sanchez who hits for more power at a fraction of the price (and the trouble) that Ichiro causes.
    I made these points before and slightly changed my tune because I was swayed by the constant references to Ichiro as such a great player, but my first instinct was correct. Ichiro is an overrated player whose main skill is hitting singles and playing solid defense. If that's what a team needs, they can go and get Willy Taveras or Juan Pierre, get similar defense in center field and not have the player dictating how the organization is run. Ichiro's batting average and hit totals may end up getting him in the Hall of Fame as they've somehow gained him all of this say-so over the Mariners, but that doesn't mean he deserves it, any of it.

Will the real Brian Bannister please stand up?

    Which Brian Bannister is the real Brian Bannister? Is it the pitcher he was with the Mets----the one that couldn't throw strikes consistently; kept getting hurt; didn't have stuff that indicated he'd be anything more than a number four or five starter (at best); and was traded for a pitcher in Ambiorix Burgos, who (despite what anyone says) has a far higher level of ability? Is he the pitcher who won 12 games for a bad Royals team in 2007 and, with a little luck, could have won 17-18 games and has at times looked unhittable this season? Is he the pitcher who, in 2008, has looked identical to the pitcher the Mets traded because he's lost the strike zone and gotten raked around the ballpark? Or is he a combination of the three?
    Bannister is showing himself to be a pitcher who has to be nearly perfect to get those great results and when he's not perfect, he becomes a less than .500 pitcher who isn't even an innings-eater. The Mets have been said to regret trading Bannister, but as he goes around the league and hitters figure him out, was it even that big of a mistake? Burgos is out for the season after arm surgery, but even if he's not back until mid-2009, he's still only going to be 25 with a fastball that was around 100 mph (if he gets it back and Tommy John surgery patients tend to come back throwing as hard, if not harder); Bannister is already 27 and is proving to be inconsistent and mediocre, just as the Mets thought when they traded him.
    The Royals couldn't have realistically expected Bannister to be as good as he was last season and they're probably happy with what they've gotten from him as a back of the rotation starter. In the long-term, he's not going to be much more than he is and that's not something that any team should regret trading because he's the type of pitcher that can be found on the waiver wire or as a reasonably priced free agent. His hot streak and ability to dominate when he's on (as rare as that is) notwithstanding, Bannister is nestled into his niche and that's not that big of a deal one way or the other.

A Disaster On Paper And In Practice

2008-06-30T14:21:41Z

    Since Moneyball enthusiasts are so fond of pointing to stats in their beliefs of constructing a team, here are some stats for the San Diego Padres: Team Record: 32-51; Record according to the Pygmalion Win Theorem: 32-51; ranked 15th in the National League in runs; 2nd in strikeouts; 15th in OBP (they're a Moneyball team!); 9th in ERA; 10th in runs and hits allowed.
    They were picked by numerous people----credible and not----to go as far as winning the World Series this year and while teams like the Mariners and Mets have been the object of relentless ridicule this year, no one seems to be unloading on the Padres to the degree that their performance warrants. In fact, there are still those----again, credible and not----who are trumpeting the candidacy of Padres assistant Paul DePodesta for a future GM job. It's getting difficult to come up with analogies to exemplify the silliness of even suggesting DePodesta for a top job considering the anecdotal evidence that he has neither the competence nor the right to be up for any job in baseball, let alone one in which he's again put in charge of a team.
     Manager Bud Black was almost directly responsible for the team blowing their lead in the NL West last season by allowing Jake Peavy to pitch on short rest against the Diamondbacks and hasn't shown the strategic acumen to coax more than what he's gotten from this flawed roster. As well-spoken and respected as Black is in the media, the question has to be asked: given how the team blew a playoff spot last season (similar to the Mets), and that they look like an expansion team this year, how has Black not been fired? The Moneyball ideal of having a manager do the bidding of upper management and take short money for the job also entails the front office's ability to randomly fire the manager when the team isn't performing. In this system, with this roster, there's no way to tell whether Black would be an effective manager if he were legitimately put in charge of a team, but the evidence of his work so far indicates that he is more deserving of the ax than Willie Randolph or John Gibbons were in their respective jobs.
     GM Kevin Towers isn't absolved of blame here either. It's a convenient excuse for every employee in the Moneyball system to shield blame from themselves when things go horribly wrong by hiding behind the numbers. Towers is functioning under some heavy-handed interference from team president Sandy Alderson and payroll constraints, but he's the GM and receives credit for being "smart"; but is this the roster of a "smart" GM or organization? Are the results? The Padres can only hide behind the injury card for so long. The Angels lost their two top starting pitchers and didn't miss a beat; the Red Sox have been without a chunk of their starting rotation and the best clutch hitter since Reggie Jackson in David Ortiz and you don't hear them whining; the Yankees are hanging in there with a bunch of journeymen starting pitchers; the injury excuse can explain away some poor play, but 32-51 is what it is on paper and on the field.
    As for DePodesta, what is it about him that people still insist that he's qualified to be a GM in the big leagues? Is it his Harvard degree? Is he such a charming and nice guy that people want to help him? Is it that they don't want to let go of the Moneyball ideal that the system is "better" than the way other teams go about running their teams when it's being disproved by the day by the repeated failures it's spawned? It reminds me of the democratic political consultant Bob Shrum. He's touted as an "expert" and introduced as a democratic consultant as if the mere designation is supposed to justify his position and imply expertise; but the man has never won one presidential campaign in which he was involved----not one. The list of losers Shrum has been involved with is a vast wasteland of democratic hopefuls who were dispatched----Dick Gephardt, Michael Dukakis, Bob Kerrey, Al Gore and John Kerry. One-by-one they lost, all of them. Yet Shrum's writing books about his work and given some form of credibility. Is it because people like him or because he's somehow convinced others with charts, graphs and numbers as to why he's been right all along but was unable to convince the people who matter----voters----of his brilliance?
    Karl Rove is sleazy, Machiavellian and repulsive; he looks like the guy in the khaki raincoat who just left the adult bookstore and is skulking away to try and avoid detection, but he has one important attribute to validate his political standing----he wins; and I can guarantee you that he would be just as effective working for the democrats as he's been working for the republicans. It's fine to stand on beliefs and principles as people like DePodesta seem to with the Moneyball system, but in the end someone has to be responsible for getting results. Adaptability and getting things done are more important than being liked. After DePodesta's nightmarish tenure with the Dodgers and this train wreck in San Diego, how is he still being promoted for a GM job? It's an honest question for which I'm still waiting for an answer. I don't expect one anytime soon.
    The one thing that the Padres are fortunate about is that the fans in San Diego are perfectly willing to move along with such a disastrous team because the weather and laid back atmosphere of the town itself precludes such angry calls for someone's head as would be heard in New York, Philadelphia or Boston. They can go along their merry way with a team that, right now, looks like it could lose 100 games and continue to try and convince the public that it's just a matter of a tweak here and there and things will resume as they were in the past few years, but the truth is right there in the numbers and on the field regardless of what they use as rationale for this nightmare. That the fans can easily say, "The Padres are terrible? Well, Chargers training camp is coming soon and until then, we can just go to the beach" is saving them from the rightful indignation that they deserve and that's part of the problem.

Observations From The Subway Series

2008-06-29T22:49:52Z

Andy Pettitte's return from a rain delay:

You have to wonder if Joe Girardi was having flashbacks to when, as manager of the Marlins, he allowed Josh Johnson to return to the mound after a rain delay and was blamed for Johnson eventually needing Tommy John surgery. Now managing the Yankees, Girardi allowed Andy Pettitte to return to the mound after a rain delay of a little less than an hour. Coincidentally, both situations were in games against the Mets.
Of course there are differences between the two circumstances; Pettitte is a veteran who should be allowed to have a strong say as to whether or not he's fit to go back out to the mound after a delay; Johnson was a rookie who shouldn't have had any say at all in whether or not he returned to the game. Girardi's been blamed by Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria for the injuries incurred by their young pitchers, so it would be natural for him to be reluctant to take the risk of returning a pitcher----any pitcher----to the mound after any kind of delay, but it showed Girardi's fortitude and was a good sign in his managerial future that he didn't let the Johnson incident cloud his decision and sent Pettitte back out there. There's still no evidence that Girardi's handling of Johnson in that one incident precipitated the injury one way or the other, but most managers would have figured it was better to shield themselves from criticism by removing the pitcher. It's a good attribute for a manager to have when he does what he feels is necessary rather than what's safe in the eyes of the media.

Why do they play the Superman theme song when Fernando Tatis comes to bat?

If there's any player in the big leagues who personifies the exact opposite of Superman, it's Fernando Tatis. Does he choose to walk to the plate to the theme song from Superman? If he doesn't and they're looking for something more apropos, they should try to play the song backwards to signify the opposite of Superman----Bizarro Superman----because that's about where Fernando Tatis is in comparison at this point in his career.

Carlos Delgado and Darrell Rasner:

    Critics are pointing to the weak pitching that Carlos Delgado used to fatten his homer/RBI total this weekend, but it's unfair to rip a 36-year-old, clean-playing first baseman for what he can't do in the twilight of his career. Delgado can't catch up to the power fastball anymore, especially inside; nor is he suited to being one of the main RBI threats in any team's lineup. The injuries to Ryan Church and Moises Alou have put Delgado into a position that he can no longer handle and he's relegated to hitting his homers against mediocre-to-poor pitching, and there's nothing wrong with that. If anyone's to blame for Delgado's exposure for what he is, it's the Mets front office for leaving him stranded as the lone second tier power threat after David Wright and Carlos Beltran, especially since they know the injury history of Alou and weren't sure what to expect from Church in his first opportunity to play every day.
    Darrell Rasner received great credit when he arrived from the minor leagues and had a series of solid starts rescuing an injured and beleaguered pitching staff, but he's also shown that he's more of a journeyman than a legitimate starter for a team that has designs on contending for a championship. His fastball is eminently hittable and he occasionally loses command; for a pitcher with such limited stuff, Rasner has to be perfect or hope that the Yankees score a bunch of runs; when that doesn't happen, he's vulnerable.
    The Rasner situation reminds me of when Jon Lieber was pitching for the Yankees against the Red Sox in the 2004 ALCS and had pitched brilliantly in game 2 outdueling Pedro Martinez. All we heard was how Lieber worked fast, pounded the strike zone and challenged the hitters; the accolades lasted until game six when Lieber gave up four runs in 7.1 innings and was outpitched by Curt Schilling as the Red Sox tied the series. With pitchers who don't have dominating stuff, their results depend on many factors including the umpire's strike zone; whether they're able to get their breaking balls over or have enough movement on their fastball to prevent it getting hit into space like Delgado's crushed shot off of Rasner. He's a fifth starter at best and the Yankees need to beef up their pitching if they're even going to make the playoffs because if they don't hit with guys like Ranser on the mound, they don't win.

Oliver Perez turns another corner, or does he? Or maybe he doesn't; or maybe he does; maybe...maybe not?

I wouldn't get all excited about Oliver Perez's performance today; he's historically pitched his best (while with the Mets) in high-pressure games against the Braves and Yankees or in playoff games. Much will be made about the mechanical adjustments made by new pitching coach Dan Warthen, but Perez's problems don't have anything to do with his mechanics to any great degree; his problems are in his spacious head; he's like an expensive sweater that would unravel completely with the pulling of one strategic thread and he's just as likely to fall apart in his next start as he is to pitch as well as he did today.
The departure of Rick Peterson and his constant harassment of Perez and harping on little details ad nauseam probably helped the pitcher feel less claustrophobic while working, but that doesn't have anything to do with five days from now. More than any other pitcher, Perez is truly a guy who's a variable from one start to the next.

Jose Reyes throws a tantrum when Carlos Delgado drops his throw:

I'll be in the minority in saying this, but Reyes had a right to be irritated about Delgado dropping that throw. It was a bit high, but not so high that it should have clanked off of Delgado's glove and given Reyes an error. Reyes shouldn't have thrown his glove and the buffoon Michael Kay harped on it in the Yankees post-game, but it's not that big of a deal. Delgado has veteran cachet in the Mets clubhouse and if it bothered him, he'll let Reyes know it. Reyes needs to tone down his overt displays of anger when things don't go well for him on the field, but this wasn't such a big deal that people like Kay should act so indignantly about it in what was more of a customary dig against the Mets from a broadcaster who hates them than any reaction over a player's emotional display.

The Wide Open National League; The Possible Breakup Of Mike And The Mad Dog

2008-06-29T13:10:19Z

The NL is wide open for just about every team:

    The only teams in the National League who should throw in the towel and start a clearance sale are the Padres and the Nationals. (I'm excluding the Rockies out of deference to their hot streak from last season; however unlikely it was and is, it happened once and could happen again.) The Padres are an embarrassment, but on the bright side for the stat geeks, they have the exact record that the Pygmalion Win Theorem dictates they should have, much like they did at the end of last year----32-50----good work.
    The Nationals have some interesting young talent (much of it listing toward the juvenile delinquent side), but it's a question as to what GM Jim Bowden's plan is; last season the Nationals succeeded in rejuvenating the careers of Dmitri Young (who had personal and professional issues that made him toxic to most teams), and Ronnie Belliard (who couldn't find a big league job after winning a ring with the Cardinals); but instead of taking the veteran players who were playing solidly for a non-contending team and maximizing their value by trading them to contenders for youngsters, Bowden lavished lucrative extensions on them. Belliard has been awful this year and Young is overweight and injured. This year they have some veterans who have value. They could get something for Cristian Guzman, Aaron Boone, Odalis Perez and Tim Redding; are they going to make the same mistake as they did last season and hold onto players who are unlikely to be around if and when the Nationals are contenders?
    As for the rest of the league, even teams like the Reds and Pirates have an excuse to make some intelligent, under-the-radar moves for veteran help (if it doesn't cost that much) to see if they can loiter around the Wild Card race. The only team that looks like a lock to make the playoffs right now is the Cubs; Lou Piniella has them running on all cylinders similar to the way he molded his Mariners teams into well-oiled machines. He's gotten surprising contributions from his veterans like Jim Edmonds and Ryan Dempster and Kerry Wood has handled the closing duties as well as can be expected. That being said, the Cubs are certainly not guaranteed to blow through the playoffs to the World Series. Who knows how Wood will react to being on the mound in a game 5 or game 7 of the playoffs; when the whole season is riding on his right arm? The Cubs aren't under any circumstances a guarantee to even get out of the first round of the playoffs, which should be all the more reason for the other NL teams to go for improvements and try to win now.
    Every contending team has their needs; even the teams that are playing very poorly and having trouble staying over .500 have reason to make a deal for an impact player. If the Brewers or Braves get a starting pitcher; if the Dodgers or Mets get a power bat; if any of the teams still in contention get one player who provides a spark, they could find themselves in the playoffs; and the absence of a team head-and-shoulders above everyone else makes the National League wide open and ripe for whichever team gets hot at the right time. Two years ago, the Cardinals overcame a woeful final month and proved that the regular season means nothing in the playoffs; there could be a similar situation this year if the right team gets the right guy to light a fire.

The possible breakup of Mike and the Mad Dog:

    It recently came out in the media that Mike Francesa and Christopher Russo of The Mike and the Mad Dog radio show in New York (simulcast on the YES Network) are in the midst of a cold war that threatens to end the on-air relationship. They've apparently had blowups in the past (they've been together since 1989), but this is said to be one of the worst and possibly irreconcilable. Neither has denied the possibility of a split and both are unsure as to what's going to happen. I was reticent to start making comments about this because I don't know the issues between the two, nor do I know what their personal situations are; but on further reflection, not having information about that which they're talking has never stopped Francesa or Russo from going on about any and every subject (movies, politics, news----and especially sports) as if they're unrivaled experts, so why shouldn't I weigh in on their careers?
     I've never been shy to unload on Francesa and Russo when they've deserved it for insipid gaffes or arrogant bluster in the area of sports; and I've certainly never been shy to unload when they've gone over the edge in saying things about other people that are borderline slanderous or simply offensive and disrespectful; I've also given them credit numerous times for good work they've done, specifically in interviews. This may be a situation where the two want to be their own entities; don't need to deal with the tension that is poisoning the relationship and is quite possibly stirring the interesting dynamic between them; and don't want to be aggravated by the quirks of the other anymore; they're both in their 50s with young children and lives away from the studio. Maybe they just don't want to deal with everything anymore.
     One thing that both should remember before committing to a breakup is that they'll never be as popular as individuals as they are as a tandem. Their audience will never reach the apex it reaches as they work together and they're not going to have the influence (positive and negative) that they do now. Even with all the ancillary aspects to such a combustible partnership, that power (such as it is) is very difficult to walk away from over some issues that might be able to be ironed out with time and a brief separation.
    If I was asked to guess what would happen, I'd say that they're going to look at all the positives and negatives of staying together versus splitting up and wind up continuing with the show. Francesa will be able to handle a solo act far better than Russo especially if the newspaper account of Russo heading to satellite radio is true. Francesa, for all of his pomposity, condescension, arrogance, self-importance and clinging to untenable beliefs, has enough of a viable take on sports and sober (especially compared to his partner) approach to be able to function alone. If Russo thinks he's going to go to satellite radio and approach the audience that he's able to attract now (even when he works alone on Saturdays), then he really is the Biggest Idiot in the World. Howard Stern, giant that he is in the radio industry, was only able to attract a fraction of his audience to satellite radio; people are not going to run out and start paying for radio to listen to Christopher Russo. On his own, he'll get a big contract, as will Francesa; they'll get a lot of money, but that may not satiate the appetites that both have for being the voices of the angry and unhinged sports fan every weekday afternoon in New York City. If they're willing to live with that, then they should by all means go their separate ways; the question is whether the money is more important than their cachet; that's what they have to weigh more than any of the other details of their staying together or splitting up.

Pedro Looks Out Of Whack, But Healthy

2008-06-28T12:39:20Z

Mets 15-Yankees 6 (Game 1); Yankees 9-Mets 0 (Game 2):

    Carlos Delgado has a massive, team-record breaking day with two homers and nine RBI and instead of people giving the guy some credit when he's been ripped relentlessly going back to last year, we hear stuff to the tune of "he's hitting off of batting practice pitchers" as a form of caveat for some positive results. No, it wasn't Brandon Webb he was hitting against when he did his damage, but every hitter fattens up his batting average and power numbers against mediocre pitchers; why should Delgado apologize or have to hear negativity when he finally does something good?
     The Yankees aren't going to be able to function for much longer with the likes of Dan Giese, Ross Ohlendorf, Kei Igawa, Edwar Ramirez and whatever other journeymen they come up with to eat some innings. They can't count on Ian Kennedy to provide a spark and no one seems to know when Phil Hughes is coming back. The Yankees have the prospects to get Roy Oswalt without digging too deeply into their farm system and that may be what they're going to have to do because the Rays don't look like they're going away and what the Yankees are trotting out there now just isn't going to cut it.
    Pedro Martinez's velocity and stamina were expected to be the issues when he returned from his injuries, but his velocity has been consistently in the upper-80s to low-90s; Pedro's problem has been his command and that his head occasionally doesn't appear to be on what he's doing. There's no excuse for a pitcher the stature of Pedro Martinez to be walking five guys in 5 2/3 innings; and where was his mind on Johnny Damon's grounder to second in the fifth inning? The pitcher is supposed to automatically bolt to cover first base on any ball hit to the right side of the infield; it looked like Pedro was in his own little world and not paying attention to what he was doing. For a guy who tries to set an example for the other pitchers on the staff, it was a colossal gaffe even though it probably didn't affect the result.

Cardinals activate Mark Mulder and put him in the bullpen:

After all the rehab starts, aches and pains, visits to more doctors with various ailments, even the Cardinals are unlikely to be expecting anything of consequence from Mark Mulder. They've got him in the bullpen for now in what looks like a case of "we may as well just bring him up and use him rather than have him waste whatever he has left rehabbing in the minors." If I had to bet, I'd say he comes up with another injury before getting into a game and goes back on the disabled list, or pitches and gets pummeled because he has very little left in his tank.

Marlins 3-Diamondbacks 1:

In what must be a far cry from the Babe Ruth references that Micah Owings heard after his hot start on the mound and at the plate, he may end up back in the minors in the very near future. On the whole, the Diamondbacks are looking eerily similar to the Mets last year----a hot start and bulging lead in their division, followed by a drunken stumble into mediocrity. The question is whether they're going to ride it out as the Mets did or do something to try to shake things up.

Rangers 8-Phillies 7:

There has to be concern in the Phillies front office that the desperation switch of Brett Myers to the bullpen last season, followed by a switch back to the rotation, has damaged the pitcher. His fastball is noticeably decreased in velocity and, aside from a solid game sprinkled in here and there, he's gotten pounded all season. Other than asking him if he's feeling healthy and/or ordering him to the doctor and possibly fiddling with his mechanics, I don't know what they can do other than just keep putting him out there and hope he straightens out.

Nicholson's Words Fit Better Than Mine

2008-06-27T12:36:55Z

I don't want money, and I don't want medals:

    Quoting Jack Nicholson when he's bullying Tom Cruise's character from A Few Good Men is appropriate in this instance:

    I don't want money, and I don't want medals. What I do want is for you to stand there in that white uniform and with your Harvard mouth extend me some courtesy.

    Yesterday while reading Buster Olney's blog, I saw that Olney had made a mistake in saying that when Kyle Lohse wins his next game for the Cardinals, he will win 10 games in a season for the first time in his career; I wrote a comment that corrected the mistake saying that Lohse won 13 games in 2002 and 14 games in 2003. When I checked later to see if the mistake was corrected, it was----by erasing it altogether. So basically, my comment looks like some random statement uttered into the wind for no reason at all like something Joe Morgan would say.
    There's nothing wrong with saying the words, "I made a mistake", but apparently those that make a living writing and talking about baseball haven't yet made that discovery and if that's one of the prerequisites, I'm relegated to my devoted readers who can see through the crud of the "mainstream" media and are aware that it takes more competence to admit that one is wrong than it does to simply try and erase a mistake hoping no one noticed.

Shawn Chacon's job prospects:

I seem to be in the minority thinking that someone is going to take a chance on Shawn Chacon, but I still believe that he'll get picked up after he apologizes and displays a facade of contrition (real or fake). He has three things going for him: everyone's desperate for pitching and Chacon has experience as a starter and reliever; he's breathing; and he has a functioning right arm. Add them up and he'll get a job once everything settles down; it'll probably be a minor league contract at first and a quick promotion after the smoke clears.
What I don't understand is how guys like Darryl Strawberry and John Rocker got chance after chance after careers full of controversy and missteps and Chacon's career is said to be over for one incident in an eight-year career that has (as far as we know) been clear of off-field problems. If Chacon apologizes to Wade and Wade accepts the apology, why shouldn't he get another chance with another organization. My one piece of advice for Chacon would be not to ask Wade for a recommendation. (A satirical resolution to this story would be if the Phillies sign Chacon; the not-fully-evolved Phillies fans would probably worship Chacon regardless of how he pitched because the majority of them probably wanted to choke Ed Wade numerous times while he was the Phillies GM and they'd have a player who'd actually done it.)

Athletics 5-Phillies 0:

Athletics GM Billy Beane is probably doing pirouettes in his office with every dominating start that Rich Harden provides because he's going to trade him. Mark my words. Other GMs would be teetering back and forth on whether or not the deal the oft-injured righty, but not Beane. The risk/reward factor doesn't enter into his mind. He's got a guy in Harden who is dominant when he's healthy, but is rarely healthy. Other GMs are going to be hypnotized by Harden's brilliance and Beane's going to use their lovestruck gaze and dearth of available pitching to get some desperate team to empty their vault to get Harden; with every healthy and excellent start, the price is only going to go up with Beane's getting exactly what he wants and the team that gets Harden eventually rueing the day they made the deal with the devil.

Twins 4-Padres 3; call in the National Guard for the Padres train wreck:

    The San Diego Padres are a complete top-to-bottom disaster and an organization in shambles. Why is it that no one seems to be taking the Padres to task with the same enthusiasm as they are with other teams like the Mariners or even the Mets? The Padres are one of the teams in the staggering NL West that is saying they're reluctant to start clearing the decks because their division is so bad and they'd like to give it more time. They shouldn't. The other teams in the NL West have something called hope.
    The Giants have that young starting rotation to fall back on; the Dodgers are bursting with talent and have a manager whose teams are known for second half surges; the Diamondbacks are playing badly, but they too are packed with prospects and have too much talent to continue playing like this; the Rockies are fresh off a World Series appearance and many of the young players who carried them there are experiencing a sophomore slump and should level off with some experience; but the Padres?
    Other than Jake Peavy (if his arm stays attached to his shoulder) and Adrian Gonzalez, what do they have that bodes well for the future? Chase Headley and Kevin Kouzmanoff could become All Stars, serviceable big leaguers or underachievers; there's no way to know. As for the rest of the roster, they're a bunch of veterans nearing retirement; journeyman who should be bench players and waiver wire pickups; their farm system is said to be barren. Bud Black and Kevin Towers might get the blame for what's happened, but they're not really at fault. If a baseball wanted poster for incompetence is going to be distributed, it should have one face and one name on it: Sandy Alderson. I expected the Padres fall under .500 this year, but no one could have expected them to descend into this, and what this is is an utter train wreck.

Is This Accurate? Can Chacon Be Terminated Without Pay?

2008-06-26T21:55:22Z

This can't be right----ESPN Story. The Associated Press is reporting that Shawn Chacon has been released by the Astros and if "he isn't claimed by another major league team by Monday, waivers will expire and his contract will be terminated without pay." The Astros have every right (some would argue a duty) to release Chacon after the incident with GM Ed Wade, but I don't think they can just not pay him without a hearing of some kind. He has a contract and while there are morals clauses in every contract, it's really hard to get out from paying a veteran player with a guaranteed contract. No matter what Chacon did, the Players Association isn't going to let this go if it's in fact accurate and I find it hard to believe that it is.

Attacking The Boss Is Generally A Bad Idea In Any Occupation

2008-06-26T12:31:16Z

Shawn Chacon attacks Astros GM Ed Wade:

    Houston Astros pitcher Shawn Chacon attacked GM Ed Wade yesterday after being demoted to the bullpen----NY Times Story----grabbing him by the neck and throwing him to the ground. Chacon was suspended indefinitely by the Astros. In general, no matter the player and his status, it's probably a bad idea to be attacking the GM of the team; for a guy like Shawn Chacon, who's on a short-term contract, it's probably not a boon to his reputation (although, he might fit in with the Club For Wayward Boys aka the Washington Nationals) or his career prospects. That being said, if what Chacon (who, as far as the public knows, has never been a problem in any of his other career stops) is saying happened is true, then Wade was out of line as well. That's not to justify attacking the guy, but there are people who shouldn't be yelled at without justification; maybe Chacon felt disrespected and just snapped.
    Whether or not the player was justifiably angry doesn't enter into the equation when attacking their boss. Yes, it's true that certain players are more powerful voices in an organization than upper management; and yes, some players don't think about consequences before they act, but the incidents that come to mind immediately of a player attacking a supposed authority figure have all resulted in that player being jettisoned and actually ending up in a better situation than before.
    Lenny Randle beat up Texas Rangers manager Frank Lucchesi after Randle lost his starting second base job to Bump Wills and wound up getting traded to the Mets, where he had an excellent season in 1977 as a starter. Wills had an excellent year as well for the Rangers. Then there's the Latrell Sprewell incident in which he choked his coach, P.J. Carlesimo while with the Golden State Warriors. It's no excuse, but Carlesimo is a notorious screamer who didn't have the history of success to sway the players to the idea that he had any business yelling at them to begin with. (Example: Larry Brown or Pat Riley yelling----okay; P.J. Carlesimo yelling----not okay.) Sprewell attacked and choked Carlesimo during a practice in 1997 and was suspended without pay and Sprewell eventually wound up rejuvenating his career with the New York Knicks. On the one hand, it's impossible to function as a boss when concerned about being attacked if something needs to be said to or done with the employee that he's not necessarily going to like; on the other hand, maybe the boss shouldn't be yelling at his employees to begin with.
    If these players had histories to the tune of Elijah Dukes and his long rap sheet of violent offenses, then it would be understandable; but Randle was a bright, well-liked guy; Sprewell, while occasionally difficult with incidents of his own, is well-spoken and intelligent; and Chacon functioned under the no-nonsense Joe Torre with the Yankees without incident. Some guys are short-tempered; others only lose their cool in such a way when they're sufficiently provoked. If Wade behaved as Chacon claims he did, he was out of line before the story turned into an assault. The assault will be the story, but Chacon might be telling the truth.
    The Astros can try to do with Chacon what the Warriors tried to do with Sprewell and "fire" him, but they'd probably only be putting him out of work for a brief time because he's a pitcher in an era that is desperately short on pitchers and, to be honest, Chacon hasn't pitched badly at all this season. Someone will take a chance on him if he's let go by the Astros and it's probably just as well for all involved if he's never allowed in the Astros clubhouse again.

Luis Castillo's contract:

    The talk shows and now newspapers are going on about how bad the Luis Castillo-Mets contract is looking now that the second baseman is hobbled by leg injuries and is slumping in the field----NY Times Story. In truth, the Mets didn't spend a ridiculous amount of money on Castillo; $25 million over four years is edible if it gets to the point where the player is unable to perform and the Mets had few options in the second base department last winter given all their other issues.
    The Mets couldn't sit around and wonder who was going to be playing second base for them while they were still so unsettled at catcher and without a legitimate ace to front the starting rotation. The second base options available----Ruben Gotay, Damion Easley and Jose Valentin from in-house; and David Eckstein and Kaz Matsui from outside----were either unreliable (Gotay, Easley and Valentin); had played for the Mets before and failed (Matsui); or overpriced themselves into small, short-term contracts with other teams (Eckstein). And Castillo hasn't been that bad this year.
    If the complaining fans were expecting anything more than a slap hitter who stole bases and got on base at a relatively good clip, they didn't know anything about Castillo to begin with. His defense has been poor and he moves like a 55-year-old man, and he does some things that are annoying like waving the bat in the strike zone on 3-0 counts (I don't think that distracts the pitcher as intended), he's not the root of the Mets problems. Eckstein was the Mets first choice to play second base this season, but he got greedy and had to take a lowball deal from the Blue Jays.
    Amid all the speculation about Castillo and the possibility of his injuries placing him on the disabled list, if I were the Mets, I would just keep writing his name in the lineup when he says he's okay to play, and sit him when he says he's not. Other than that, there's little else for them to do. If the Mets don't turn things around, it won't be because of anything that Castillo did or didn't do; he is what he is and that's not as bad as it's being portrayed because he's been almost what they rightfully should have expected at this point in his career regardless of what he's being paid.