2009 MLB Regular Season Thread

[RedKingGold]

I kinda hope the Phillies put in a claim for Glavine.

[Dr. Sak]

I was just thinking the same thing. Two guys in their 40s in their rotation!

[Lathum]

Yay!

The Mets won't lose!

[k0ruptr]

The Braves also traded for Nate Mclouth today, beefing up there outfield a lil bit.

[Dr. Sak]

That was really the last reason to go see the Pirates...what a bunch of bums.

[stevew]

FUCK

McAllStar was the only one worth watching.


Good for the Braves. White boy hustle with good numbers.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

That was really the last reason to go see the Pirates...what a bunch of bums.

And he was never going to be a part of the next good Pirate team. Honestly, if Nate McLouth is the only reason to watch the Pirates, then the problems run very deep. McLouth is good, but merely a complimentary piece on a good team.

One major league ready pitcher, one mid-level prospect, and a projectable lefthander a bit lower in the chain is not a bad return for Nate McLouth. Morton has the stuff and the minor league numbers to be a pretty decent pitcher.

[Big Fo]

Sounds like the McLouth trade is a good move. It sounds like the Braves dicked over Glavine but the starting pitching looks pretty good right now so I don't really care.

Hanson will be starting on Saturday.

[stevew]

HUGE balls to make the move I will say.

Andrew McCutcheon era starts tomorrow.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I'm not the least bit bothered by the thought of never having to watch Glavine struggle to last 5 innings in a start again, but I will say that it seems pretty iffy to release him after he completed a rehab assignment that by most accounts appeared to happen only after the Braves twisted his arm to do it (no pun intended). He was talking about retirement after he got hurt coming out of spring until conversations with team management. I mean, it's not as though his velocity was going to suddenly climb several mph, they knew what his top end was & he appeared to have reached that point, so it does seem like they kind of screwed him around on this a bit.

The McLouth deal is hard not to like but given my feelings about Frank Wren's acumen for his job, I figure he's either hurt or on the verge of a catastrophic decline of Francouerian proportions.

[MikeVic]

Why isn't Julio Franco on a team yet.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by lungs

And he was never going to be a part of the next good Pirate team. Honestly, if Nate McLouth is the only reason to watch the Pirates, then the problems run very deep. McLouth is good, but merely a complimentary piece on a good team.

One major league ready pitcher, one mid-level prospect, and a projectable lefthander a bit lower in the chain is not a bad return for Nate McLouth. Morton has the stuff and the minor league numbers to be a pretty decent pitcher.

The Pirates do this over and over to any young talent they have. I'm sure they will fuck up whatever they got in return. I don't care, I'm not a Pirates fan. But I do find it sad that probably the nicest ball park in the country has such a shitty team year after year.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

The Pirates do this over and over to any young talent they have. I'm sure they will fuck up whatever they got in return. I don't care, I'm not a Pirates fan. But I do find it sad that probably the nicest ball park in the country has such a shitty team year after year.

That's the problem when you only develop one decent player here and there. It's not the fault of the current management that what they inherited is an utter and complete mess (not that I'm saying anybody is saying that).

I saw rumors that the Pirates would be going on the cheap in the draft so they can put more money into the international market, but the Pirates President just said that wouldn't be true, that they wouldn't be going cheap in the draft and they would go after some highly touted international free agents.

Instead of paying Nate McLouth $5 million a year chasing that 75th win, the Pirates are doing the smart thing and putting money into their player development. Heck, this trade opens up a spot for a pretty darn talented young player in McCutchen. The move obviously doesn't look good in the short term, but this is the kind of long term thinking that makes me feel (and fear as a Brewer fan) that the Pirates are headed in the right direction finally after years of careless management chasing 75 wins while deluding themselves into thinking they were better than they actually were.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by MikeVic

Why isn't Julio Franco on a team yet.

Garrett Anderson is taking up his roster spot.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Dr. Sak

I'm sure they will fuck up whatever they got in return.

I'm not sure they got all that much.
Hernandez is a legit prospect with speed but has to keep improving his OBP to be a serious contributor in the majors someday, Morton has been passed by several pitchers in the organization & looked like a AAAA pitcher at best in most of his appearances last year , and off hand I'm not sure I've ever heard Locke's name before the trade.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Want to know how interested Atlanta is in the current Braves versus what little is left of the past? Check out the pecking order of the news at ajc.com
(each of those is a link of course that doesn't come through when I paste 'em)

Team avoids paying $1M bonus; pitcher was on disabled list.

* Glavine's career
* Discuss
* Bradley: Time for Glavine to go
* Braves get All-Star McLouth
* Gametracker
* Braves news

Where else could acquiring an all-star outfielder get that much less play than the release of a washed up over the hill pitcher? Yeah yeah, hall of fame this hall of fame that, but he's won exactly two games for the Braves since 2002, he hasn't been a relevant part of this team since my rising 6th grader was in pre-K.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

I'm not sure they got all that much.
Hernandez is a legit prospect with speed but has to keep improving his OBP to be a serious contributor in the majors someday, Morton has been passed by several pitchers in the organization & looked like a AAAA pitcher at best in most of his appearances last year , and off hand I'm not sure I've ever heard Locke's name before the trade.

Sounds right, and plus, first rule of trading - any pitching prospect the Braves give up is irrevocably fucked. (Of the top of my head, Jason Schmidt is the only one I can think of who ever did anything). I think Morton could be a solid back-end SP and Hernandez could be anything for a 4th OF to a 2nd-tier starting CF, but the key is Locke - hard-throwing LHP's are fairly rare. That being said, Nate's pretty overrated; he's a HTWG at heart.

[larrymcg421]

Heh, I remember how high people were on David Nied.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Crapshoot

That being said, Nate's pretty overrated; he's a HTWG at heart.

But barring a complete collapse he's still an significant upgrade over what we've been rolling out there & at the cost of what? A guy who had already blown his shot at making the staff, a guy who was position blocked by Schaefer, and a guy I doubt 30 people had ever heard of?

On the bright side, his 7 steals this season are more than half the Braves current team total. On the down side, I doubt Bobby Cox is entirely sure what a stolen base is.

[Crapshoot]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

But barring a complete collapse he's still an significant upgrade over what we've been rolling out there & at the cost of what? A guy who had already blown his shot at making the staff, a guy who was position blocked by Schaefer, and a guy I doubt 30 people had ever heard of?

On the bright side, his 7 steals this season are more than half the Braves current team total. On the down side, I doubt Bobby Cox is entirely sure what a stolen base is.

Yeah, no doubt - the marginal improvement for the Braves is significant. I think Nate is a good, cost-controlled player (for 2.5 years, + an option) - that increases his value. And given that the Braves have a worse OF than the Giants, I can understand why marginal improvements are cheap.

[stevew]

I wouldn't put him in eckstein territory. But our outfield defense should improve tomorrow. Lollipop arm and average to below average range. Anyways he is a likeable guy. I know that counts for zero wins. I will miss him but I'm gonna hold onto the faith that better days are ahead. I think we need to sell high on a few other guys like Maholm and maybe even Duke.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by stevew

I wouldn't put him in eckstein territory. But our outfield defense should improve tomorrow. Lollipop arm and average to below average range. Anyways he is a likeable guy. I know that counts for zero wins. I will miss him but I'm gonna hold onto the faith that better days are ahead. I think we need to sell high on a few other guys like Maholm and maybe even Duke.

I think now would be a great time with Duke. He looks like he may have turned the corner and turned into a legitimate MLB starter, but he has enough service time and has thrown enough big league innings to make me think we should be selling high. If we could get a solid MI prospect and/or 1B prospect as the cornerstone of a package, I'd feel pretty good about the new front office.

I think Maholm can be a good 2 or 3 starter for a long time, so I hope we keep him for awhile.

[stevew]

I'm not super concerned with 1b but middle infield is a must.

[Atocep]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

But barring a complete collapse he's still an significant upgrade over what we've been rolling out there & at the cost of what? A guy who had already blown his shot at making the staff, a guy who was position blocked by Schaefer, and a guy I doubt 30 people had ever heard of?

On the bright side, his 7 steals this season are more than half the Braves current team total. On the down side, I doubt Bobby Cox is entirely sure what a stolen base is.

Getting an average-above average corner that is a massive upgrade over what you have for 3 iffy prospects is a good deal. Teams tend to hold onto their 2nd tier prospects way to tightly so leveraging them for talent in a winnable division is a good move, IMO. Hernandez, regardless of the hype around him, is a 2nd tier prospect.

[Atocep]

Dola

I also think it's move Pittsburgh had to make. They weren't going to be able to extend McClouth and the closer he gets to free agency the less value he'd have. They're a team desperate for any type of minor league talent right now.

[RomaGoth]

Sammy Sosa says he is retiring.

No shit? I hadn't realized he was still relevant except for his "alleged" steroid use...

[Dr. Sak]

I heard the real reason the Pirates got rid of Nate was because he was a Red Wings fan. We all know how pissed Pittsburgh fans got at Cowher for rooting against the Pens.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

F'n unbelievable. I realize that teams have issues from time to time, but the Royals are downright embarrassing right now. 5-18 in the last 23 games? C'mon now. Pull your head out. I don't expect a playoff team as a fan, but I do expect SOME effort.

[Ksyrup]

McLouth ain't great, but it doesn't look like they gave up a ton for him and he's reasonably signed for a couple more years.

The Glavine thing...they say it was due to his velocity, and I agree that pitching well at the AAA level and the MLB level are two different things. But I think ultimately it came down to wasting a rotation spot with him, plus paying him not just $1M but another $1.25M I believe in 30 days if he was still on the roster, as opposed to Hanson. I believe they would have gone with Glavine if they didn't have any other options. But when you've got a guy like Hanson so obviously ready, it's a no-brainer to not pay the old guy on a hope and a prayer and go with the cheap, young stud. I think they signed Glavine as insurance, and ultimately they decided they didn't need him once the other options panned out.

[lordscarlet]

True doubleheader today!

As long as they don't get rained out, the WAS vs. SFG game from last night will be at 4:35 followed by the second game 25 minutes later. My ticket for tonight's game will get me in to both.

[miked]

Yeah, I don't get this loyalty to Glavine. He pitched for the rival Mets for a few years (which probably helped the Braves). Smoltz is one thing, who left after pitching his entire career with the Braves, but Glavine was a washed up pitcher who had already left for the green a few years ago. He was due 1M for being added to the ML roster, 1.25M in 30 days, and I think another 1.5M in 60 days. Silly to keep him considering the penny pinching of signing Garret "piece of shit" Anderson over Dunn or somebody who could actually hit.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

True doubleheader today!

As long as they don't get rained out, the WAS vs. SFG game from last night will be at 4:35 followed by the second game 25 minutes later. My ticket for tonight's game will get me in to both.

I've never been able to go to a true doubleheader

And nowadays, they just day/night everything so even finding one is rare

SI

[JS19]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

F'n unbelievable. I realize that teams have issues from time to time, but the Royals are downright embarrassing right now. 5-18 in the last 23 games? C'mon now. Pull your head out. I don't expect a playoff team as a fan, but I do expect SOME effort.

What does the Royals farm system look like? I would have to assume they have had a bunch of high 1st round choices over the yrs.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

True doubleheader today!

As long as they don't get rained out, the WAS vs. SFG game from last night will be at 4:35 followed by the second game 25 minutes later. My ticket for tonight's game will get me in to both.

Cool for you, but I wonder if this isn't more a combination of unique circumstances than being nice to fans. One, they absolutely want Randy Johnson pitching in their park, and two, I haven't seen the weather for your area, but if there is still rain aroundin the morning, then an early afternoon start might have been dicey and they just decided to push that game back as far as they could to have the best possibility of Johsnon making his start while in Washington.

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

I've never been able to go to a true doubleheader

And nowadays, they just day/night everything so even finding one is rare

SI

Yeah, that's why I'm so excited.

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Cool for you, but I wonder if this isn't more a combination of unique circumstances than being nice to fans. One, they absolutely want Randy Johnson pitching in their park, and two, I haven't seen the weather for your area, but if there is still rain aroundin the morning, then an early afternoon start might have been dicey and they just decided to push that game back as far as they could to have the best possibility of Johsnon making his start while in Washington.

Oh, I don't doubt it at all. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they only complete one game tonight or possibly none. The rain really isn't supposed to let up today. I suspect you are 100% accurate. In addition, I don't think they could convince SF to make a trip out here to play the game if they postponed it to another day.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by JS19

What does the Royals farm system look like? I would have to assume they have had a bunch of high 1st round choices over the yrs.

They brought up the #1 overall pick from 2 years ago (Hochevar) a few weeks ago since he was destroying AAA. He then promptly got shelled over a couple of weeks and was sent back down.

Alex Gordon is the other big recent pick. He's been on the DL most of the season.

That's still no excuse. They should be playing better than they have been. The bullpen has been atrocious of late.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by JS19

What does the Royals farm system look like? I would have to assume they have had a bunch of high 1st round choices over the yrs.

They have a lot of good pitching prospects at AA and a lot of really nice parts at high A and A but the only thing major league ready is Kila, who is sortof blocked at the MLB level by the two-headed monster that is Billy Butler and Mike Jacobs. Which, yeah, is kindof sad when you say it like that. But they need to give Butler a chance- he's only 23 and one of those 1st round picks you're talking about.

Until the last 2 years, they went for a lot of signability picks so that leads to a lot of crappy talent. Since Dayton Moore has arrived, they've poured a ton of cash into the draft, including handing out the most bonus money of any club last year and paying well above slot for quite a few players (not just in the 1st round). But, again, since that was only 2 drafts worth, most of the talent is in the lower levels.

And, like MBBF said, Hochevar (2006)- well, no one really understands why he was taken anyways and he was picked in this nebulous time between when previous GM Allard Baird was fired and Moore was hired so the draft 3 years ago is this weird limbo zone. But he was lighting it up again in AAA and promptly shelled at the MLB level. Gordon (2005) also still has a chance to be a good MLB hitter and a lot of people were pegging this as a possible breakout season but he went on the DL a couple of weeks in and still isn't expected back for at least another month. Zack Greinke was the 2002 1st round pick- you might have heard of him

SI

[Logan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

And, like MBBF said, Hochevar (2006)- well, no one really understands why he was taken anyways and he was picked in this nebulous time between when previous GM Allard Baird was fired and Moore was hired so the draft 3 years ago is this weird limbo zone.

I might be misreading, but wasn't Hochevar a very highly-regarded prospect?

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Logan

I might be misreading, but wasn't Hochevar a very highly-regarded prospect?

There was much debate about this many pages back...

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Of course he isn't and the strawman you're claiming said that doesn't exist. Hochaver is a very good pitcher and makes the Royals starting staff one of the best five in baseball. He's a guy that most other teams only wish they had as their 5th starter.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

There was much debate about this many pages back...

Yeah, I still can't believe that he fell so flat on his face after he came up. At least we won't hear a lot of bitching from he and Boras for awhile about how he should be in the majors.

[lordscarlet]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Yeah, I still can't believe that he fell so flat on his face after he came up. At least we won't hear a lot of bitching from he and Boras for awhile about how he should be in the majors.

Hopefully Strasburg fairs better. (In performance, not contract negotiations!)

[sterlingice]

Yeah, but at the time, Andrew Miller was pretty much the default #1 pick and it was a little perplexing as to why KC took Hochevar.

SI

[Logan]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

There was much debate about this many pages back...

Oh believe me, I remember...I meant more in terms of SI's "not sure why he was picked" when I remember him being widely considered one of the top pitching prospects in the draft that year along with Andrew Miller, which is why I assume he was picked (and I think that was the year Lincecum, Joba, and Krenshaw came out too - talk about some pitching talent).

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

Yeah, but at the time, Andrew Miller was pretty much the default #1 pick and it was a little perplexing as to why KC took Hochevar.

SI

I remember that banter quite well. Obviously, the coin flip didn't go well for the Royals.

[Fighter of Foo]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

McLouth ain't great, but it doesn't look like they gave up a ton for him and he's reasonably signed for a couple more years.

The Glavine thing...they say it was due to his velocity, and I agree that pitching well at the AAA level and the MLB level are two different things. But I think ultimately it came down to wasting a rotation spot with him, plus paying him not just $1M but another $1.25M I believe in 30 days if he was still on the roster, as opposed to Hanson. I believe they would have gone with Glavine if they didn't have any other options. But when you've got a guy like Hanson so obviously ready, it's a no-brainer to not pay the old guy on a hope and a prayer and go with the cheap, young stud. I think they signed Glavine as insurance, and ultimately they decided they didn't need him once the other options panned out.

Braves gave up nothing of value for McLouth. No idea why the Pirates would trade him for peanuts. Mclouth (obviously) immediately improves the worst OF in MLB. Glavine was managed horribly; standard MO under Wren.

[Fighter of Foo]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Hopefully Strasburg fairs better. (In performance, not contract negotiations!)

Strasburg actually has a kickass fastball so I wouldn't worry about it. You probably won't see him this year though since he likely won't sign until August.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

I remember that banter quite well. Obviously, the coin flip didn't go well for the Royals.

People want to go revisionist and act like Lincecum was in the mix but everyone had him down a little bit because of his frame and injury size. It was really between Hochevar and Miller and no one really understood the Hochevar pick. I still remember Poz's article the day of or day before that draft about "the presumptive number 1" draft pick or something like that where he talks about what a number 1 is and how KC better have a good reason for not picking him.

SI

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

People want to go revisionist and act like Lincecum was in the mix but everyone had him down a little bit because of his frame and injury size. It was really between Hochevar and Miller and no one really understood the Hochevar pick. I still remember Poz's article the day of or day before that draft about "the presumptive number 1" draft pick or something like that where he talks about what a number 1 is and how KC better have a good reason for not picking him.

SI

Speaking of revisionist history, I always laugh when someone around here talks about Albert Pulois and how the Royals didn't manage to draft him when he went to high school in the area. Last I checked, every other team in the majors overlooked him several times as well before he was finally selected.

[JonInMiddleGA]

FWIW, here's the USA Today article the day after Hochevar was taken #1.

University of North Carolina lefty Andrew Miller had been considered a favorite to be taken first until Hochevar became available last week after the Dodgers' deadline to sign him passed. Miller slipped to the Detroit Tigers at No. 6.

In between, Colorado took Stanford right-hander Greg Reynolds at No. 2, Pittsburgh chose righty Brad Lincoln from the University of Houston at No. 4 and Seattle followed with University of California righty Brandon Morrow.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Speaking of revisionist history, I always laugh when someone around here talks about Albert Pulois and how the Royals didn't manage to draft him when he went to high school in the area. Last I checked, every other team in the majors overlooked him several times as well before he was finally selected.

Yeah, it's ridiculous to say someone who was drafted in a round ending in -teen should have been with team X or team Y. Every team had at least 10 chances at him and passed. That said, you don't hear that from other teams' fans about KC, just from Royals fans who want to find something to be 20/20 pissed at.

SI