Moving west doesn't bother me nearly as much as having to share a facility. Shared facilities have zero charm. DePo never would have allowed this. :)

Random OJ Simpson update:

Simpson has failed to pay the $33.5 million judgment against him in the civil suit. His NFL pension and his Florida home cannot legally be seized

I wonder how long he can get away with not ponying up.

wonder how long he can get away with not ponying up.

i'll start the bidding at twelve years, five months.

I'm beginning to think this OJ person is a bad guy.

As I mentioned here

http://6-4-2.blogspot.com/2006/11/pickoff-moves_15.html

I think there may be less here than meets the eye. There's too many teams wanting to move in, not enough dollars to go around (this year), and one of those teams will have to move to Tempe (the Indians have a deal with Goodyear, but it expires soon). I'll believe it when I see them break ground, not that I think that's impossible.

I share a good amount of your skepticism, Rob.

So would this switch to the Cactus league be 1-2 years in the future or 4-5 years?

Re: the Simers column

I find it unconscionable that the McCourts wouldn't even call Porter to tell him he was fired. I've had to let people go occasionally, and common courtesy dictated that I do it face to face with explanation.

I've been a Dodger fan for over 20 years and I had never been to Vero Beach until this last June, and I was in town for a completely different reason.

I would be willing to make a long weekend trip to Arizona for Spring Training, which is what I think that the Dodgers management wants.

By the way, even though there was nobody else at Dodger town but me and some guy working on the sprinklers, it was totally awesome to spend a few hours just cruising around the grounds and think about the history of what had been there. But again, I could never afford to make that trip with my family. Glendale I could make it to.

This news will probably mean like going to New York to see a game at Yankee Stadium before it closes down, going to Vero Beach will become something to do too if Arizona becomes a reality.

5 - Tempe, fooey, that should have been Tucson.

Jon - Am correct to assume, according to Los Angeles Magazine, you are on their list of 122 influential figures in L.A.

If so, congrats, and if not, than fooey for a magazine that can't decide on whether to put a UCLA or USC song girl on the cover.

Following the Burrell talk in the last thread, Rosenthal says the Phillies have signed Wes Helms for $5.5-6 mil over 2 years, likely to be their starting 3B. DeRosa $13 mil, 3 years; Blanco $5.25 mil, 2 years; Helms $6 mil, 2 years, it can't be a good sign when backup players are making this much. Our current bench of Anderson, Martinez, Saenz, and Repko will be making a combined $3 mil, the same as Helms, who is essentially a younger Saenz, defensively and offensively.

It would probably be best to ignore the money, okay aside from 50 million to just talk to Scott Boras, but view it like it was 2 years ago when the Russ Ortizs and Kris Bensons got big contracts. Everything is going to be overpriced, heck even Ramon Martinez looks like a bargain.

Was it the Cubs that gave Henry Blanco five million dollars?

I just looked it up. Wow.

Hobos, $6m for two years is a BARGAIN to get Abe Nunez out of the lineup!

14 - Seriously, this market is making the ARod winter look sane, isn't it?

Are any other OSX Safari users seeing all-italic text?

I agree with Greg, we should just sit out of the free agent market.

Now I might have to actually root for us signing Soriano so we do not trade any young pitching.

OJ Mayo signed a LOI to USC.

Bowling Green vs. Miami on ESPN2 is an aesthetic pleasure in my book.

http://tinyurl.com/ygss4r

Frank Thomas looks to be going to the Blue Jays, so I guess our hated rival Barry Bonds could end up an Athletic.

22
Bonds and Bradley on the same team......that would amount to chaos

22
Unless of course the Padres are successful in signing Bonds.

what kind of sucks for the payroll is that we are going to have close to 14mil in dead salary for 2007. i have:

cruz buyout of 300k
mueller salary of 4.5
odalis perez money sent to KC of 8mil
gagne buyout 1mil

21
How glossy is your book, Bob?

25
Plus another $6.6 million for Bomko and BJ

27

BJ can be nontendered. i already included bombko in my burrell deal.

But he could be tender if you used enough barbeque sauce.

Given the money so far, would anyone want to speculate how much Mantle, Mays, Koufax, Gibson, Musial, Marichal or others might make now as free agents?

Are there that many zeros on a calculator?

barbeque sauce

Texas or Carolina? (Please be Texas...Please be Texas...)

18

Yes, I am.

Rotoworld claims Blue Jays signing of Thomas may mean they will deal Wells.

would you trade Penny in a centerpiece for Burrell?

34 - No. The Phillies would probably not take him either, since their objective is to dump salary.

I'd trade Brad Penny for Vernon Wells, though

WOW South Park is finally good again!!!

Vernon Wells' numbers look a lot like Carlos Lee. Lots of power, not great at getting on base much, and not great on defense. That's seems to be what's available this year.

okay im almost done with my "what i would do if i was Ned Colletti" offseason plan.

i will release it in details soon.

39 No need. A spy already leaked it to me.

It's in my Nate file.

40

you probably already knows what it says. alot of the ideas have already been floated on here.

BYU is just launching 25 foot 3's against the mighty Bruins.

They are going in.

it only included one high priced free agent signing!

41 Well, between that and the hackers I employ to gather info, yes, I have a pretty good idea.

wow...

While it's uncertain whether Thomas' deal is for three years or two with an option, a source said the total value could exceed $30 million.

big hurt to bluejays deal. 30mil is insane.

45 I want no part of this insanity.

45
Beane got him for 500k.

How much are you planning to give Fasano, Purcey...?

Stanford and UCLA are showing off the PAC 10's usual promise a little early this year.

46

The Susan Powter School of baseball management I see.

How much are you planning to give Fasano, Purcey...?

fasanos property of the yanks. if they non tender him, then around .750k

UCLA needs to run some more offense through the Prince.

There's actually a crowd at Pauley Pavilion for an early season game. The last few years a game like this would have drawn 5000 people.

But what's with all the points? What happened to the 20-17 halftime scores?

52
There were even rumors the game was sold out.

They turned out to be false.

52
Amazing how a monster season and the promise of success leads to support in the program.

I wish that extended to foo...awe, you know where I was going with that.

There are several interesting aspects to this article from the Phillies web site that suggests the Phillies may have made an offer to Soriano. The Phils are scheduled to meet with Soriano's agent today. Perhaps more interesting is the discussion from Gillick that pitching additions may be more likely to come via trade than the free agent market.

The Phills landing Soriano could be the best thing to happen to the Dodgers, not only keeping us away from Soriano but allowing us to trade for Burrell.......is there any way they would take Tomko and a B pitching prospect?

38.
Wells is a 3 time gold glover including one this year...he cant be that bad on D

54
I did not know UCLA played foosball.

budinger just dropped 32pts in Arizona's home opener tonight.

Well, Cal has Utah Valley St. down by 5, so PAC 10 fans will have something to get excited about.

56 Wells is a 3 time gold glover including one this year...he cant be that bad on D

Bobby Abreu posted a -13 Plus / Minus rating in 2005, making him the twenty-eighth-best rightfielder in baseball, and he held .492 of advancing runners, good for eleventh in the MLB. Despite his mediocrity, Abreu won the 2005 Gold Glove for Right Field

Real cool BYU recruit actual basketball players that can shoot instead of freak athletes.

Oregon has a 5'6" freshman guard who is averaging over 30 points per game

It's entirely possible that the UCLA attendance is due to BYU fans. Mormons are everywhere! :-)

Mormons are everywhere!

16-kid households will do that

62- maybe, Oregon would let me walk on. I'm 5'11 and can dunk on a 9 foot rim. I'm pretty quick too (I was a sprinter in high school).

My offseason plan includes giving Zito a 6 year deal for $15-16 million a year, trading for Pat Burrell, and letting Nomar walk.

UCLA opens Wednesday at home against BYU before heading to the Maui Invitational on Nov. 20. After that, the Bruins have a favorable schedule, with eight of their next nine games at home, including their Pac-10 opener against the Washington schools. They don't hit the road again until January.

Don't tax yourselves guys. Save some for tournament play.

My offseason plan includes giving Zito a 6 year deal for $15-16 million a year, trading for Pat Burrell, and letting Nomar walk.

mine includes 2/3 of those proposals.

Mine includes writing a 135-word sentence.

See Greg's file for details.

Meloan pitched 2.1 innings tonight. solar sox only have one more game remaining on their schedule so it seems like his AFL season is done.

final line:

18.1 IP, 12 Hits, 4 ER, 8 BB, 21 K's

eh, decent.

the UofA cats play this year is alot like the suns. High scoring, fast break, run and gun and absolutely no defense.

except for Jordan Hill. Hes going to be a defensive beast.

Florida plays 16 of its first 17 games this season at home. The only road game is at Florida A&M. They do host Kansas and Ohio State in that stretch. The FAMU game is the only nonconference road game for the Gators.

70
So basically like last year.

My offseason plan includes giving Zito a 6 year deal for $15-16 million a year, trading for Pat Burrell, and letting Nomar walk.

I think we basically need to sign Zito but is anyone else scared that the Mets will either drive up the price so we really OVER pay? or likely outbid us

72

yes but more potential!

big game for those UofA Cats against my Cards in New York in few weeks. it's the first time i can remember louisville playing a big non-conference (not kentucky) game in some time.

64 The average number of kids per family in my cul-de-sac is about 6 per household, several with 9. So 16 is stretching it. But there is indeed a sizeable contingent in LA.

70- Marcus Williams is a beast. I'm expecting a huge year for him in likely his last year at Arizona.

73- I don't really care, Zito needs to be the Dodgers number one target. I think I'd even go up to $17 million a year. It's crazy money, but Zito is extremely durable and goes deep into games. He's the type player and person (team chemistry booster!) that you want leading your young pitching staff. He's like Derek Lowe with a brain, minus the alcohol problems.

At this rate, I expect Jon to boo Air Force flyovers at any sporting event he attends.

76
Is Daniel so famous now that he just goes by one name?

big game for those UofA Cats against my Cards in New York in few weeks. it's the first time i can remember louisville playing a big non-conference (not kentucky) game in some time.

79 I use zappala to refer to collective opinions expressed by myself and all my 16 kids.

The last time I was in Sicily, the restaurant served little patties of Zappala brand butter. So yes, it is a household name.

Marcus Williams is a beast. I'm expecting a huge year for him in likely his last year at Arizona.

Most of us agree here in tucson agree that is likely the case as well. Although it really isnt a big deal. We are getting Bayless and Jamelle horn next year, both are 5star recruits.

I just dont want to lose budinger or McCellan after this year.

Bayless will be a big deal because he is a big time shooter and driver and plays a smart basketball game, a problem for many of Arizona's big time athletes.

I don't really care, Zito needs to be the Dodgers number one target. I think I'd even go up to $17 million a year. It's crazy money, but Zito is extremely durable and goes deep into games. He's the type player and person (team chemistry booster!) that you want leading your young pitching staff. He's like Derek Lowe with a brain, minus the alcohol problems

I pretty much agree that the Dodgers need to concede and just agree to overpay, which I think Ned may do anyway. if we cant get Zito, Schmidt is a MUST..... I guess the bright side of this is the fact that we would then only be able to afford one starting pitcher thus, allowing Bills and Kuo to start

Evidence of world domination, or perhaps mafia ties in the dairy industry:

http://www.zappala.it/

84
Or we could just give up on 07 since we would have to make so many bad moves for the future just to be competitive next season.

Don McLean can't remember anything about the 1982 UCLA-BYU game, but that was a good game. It was also the first time Bill Walton ever worked as a TV analyst. He hadn't had all of his speech therapy yet to correct his stammer, and he was a little reserved.

A big play at the end of the game was a held ball. It was the first year that the NCAA got rid of jump balls for those and Walton was aghast at the new rule.

That UCLA team had its season book ended by the Beehive State. They lost the opener at home to BYU and lost in the NCAA tournament to Utah and the dreaded Pace Mannion.

Not related to me:

http://www.timmermann.com/

"Zappala' works for milk and milk-based products to be main protagonists of the Italian nourishment."

I kid you not.

The owner of this company is related to me:
http://www.timmermannimp.com/

89
Sounds like an Italian version of Mr. Sparkle.

86

I just think we will still have a ton of flexability over the next few years with young and inexpensive Kuo, Billingsley, Elbert and then Zito long term

90 You must be really embarrassed. Your relatives need to learn the difference between the possessive and the plural.

93
I'm sure Bill contracted the website design out.

91 For lucky best cheese pizza, use Zappala mozzarella.

myself and all my 16 kids

I knew it!

I really wish promos for UCLA football did not include clips of Geoff Strand.

Ah, Bob, that web site reminds me driving through Montana this summer, and the only radio station I could tune in was giving the cattle futures report.

95
Zapala mozzarella banishes bad tasting cheese to the land of wind and ghosts.

Stupid missing p. Sorry Daniel. Typo!

98
Bill is one of my diehard Cardinal fan relatives.

I'm sure the World Series met with his approval. Despite what other people on Baseball Toaster thought.

"Third, the Cleveland Indians have expressed interest in moving to Goodyear, Ariz., which would put them in competition with the Dodgers and White Sox for those same dollars.
It may well end up that the Dodgers have to pay for their Arizona facility on their own, or wait a few years for more money from the state to appear."

Why don't the White Sox just stay where they are then and let the Dodgers do the joint thing in Goodyear with Cleveland?

Was Bill lucky enough to attend a game?

103
I don't know. The California Timmermanns and the Midwest Timmermanns don't get together too often. Especially since my father passed on.

the Midwest Timmermanns

aka the Frumpy Timmermanns

To re-live Mr. Sparkle again and again:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duqvXu3Wu0Q

If you would have told Jon and Daniel that Stanford football would win, and bball would get housed by 30 by Air Force...

Well, let's just say it wasn't very probable.

I would have expected both the Stanford football and basketball teams to lose by 30.

Where's Nate's master plan? He promised it 70 posts ago...

Now I have learned where Utah Valley State College is. It's in Orem! It has a satellite college in Heber City.

i was going to post it when jon makes a new thread.

and, its not done yet, im still trying to figure stuff out.

Shipp looked like he came up a bit gimpy on those drives.

111 Hopefully it's better than my sign Zito, wait 'till next year plan. I doubt a heart of the order consisting of Burrell, Kent and Craig Wilson/Aubrey Huff will threaten anyone.

113

Well thats true, but if ZIPs is somewhat correct, we should still have an awesome season watching our young players progress and produce at high levels.

UNC played Winthrop tonight in mens' basketball.

UNC was 11-19 from the line. Winthrop was 0-1.

UCLA's win ties the alltime series record with BYU at 11-11.

The only other team on UCLA's schedule this year that they have a losing record against alltime is West Virginia (1-2).

UCLA shot 30 free throws and BYU shot 10, but that's not surprising since BYU was taking the ball inside.

110 I drive by UVSC every day on my way into work. It is also the new home of the Orem Owlz, who used to be the Provo Angels when they played at BYU's stadium. I hate the new name, but between the Owlz, SL Bees, and Ogden Raptors, we get our fill of minor league ball within an hour drive.

Utah Valley is also called Happy Valley, but we're not too happy tonight.

I was very impressed with BYU. They look like a tournament team. Good shooters!

117
That comment would have made more sense if I put the word "not" in there somewhere.

Words I never thought I'd write: Tonight's Larry King Live was awesome. The first half I didn't see, but the part where Suzanne Somers has set off a round of international intrigue over a magical recipe for never getting old. Her detractors are, apparently, stooges of the big pharmaceutical companies, which is to say, they have medical degrees. Then, a known man tried to get in on the discussion, before Ms. Somers helpfully pointed out that he was a man.

Just all around awesome. If you can't sleep and there's a replay on, you'll thank me later.

121 Sorry, but if Steve and Edie, Art Linkletter, or Pat Boone aren't on, I'm not watching.

TONIGHT! FOR THE HOUR...ANDY GRIFFITH TAKES YOUR CALLS!

Seriously, skew a little older, Larry.

The Dodgers are moving closer to re-signing free-agent first baseman Nomar Garciaparra, 33, most likely to a two-year deal, according to major-league sources with knowledge of the negotiations.
Foxsports/rotoworld

I really didn't want Nomar back, but if it's for only two years then it's not as bad as I thought. I expect Nomar to get $11-12 million a year.

Best case scenario if Nomar re-signs: Jeff Kent is traded for anything, Nomar moves to 2B, Loney starts at 1B, and Betemit and LaRoche battle it out for the 3B job.

I know it's just speculation, so I apologize for feeding the beast, but rumor has it Nomar is close to returning to the Dodgers, possibly on a 2-year deal.

Sources:

http://tinyurl.com/yecruk

http://tinyurl.com/ybdc6t

You beat me to the punch, Miltie.

I call Uncle.

i dont really want nomar back. oh well.

Yeah. Loney, Betemit, LaRoche, Nomar, Kent.

Somebody's got to go.

Better not be LaRoche or Loney.

Me either. Where is he going to play? I rather not see Loney in the outfield.

Other possible targets for the Rays if they move Baldelli or left fielder Carl Crawford: Angels right-hander Ervin Santana, Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley or one of the Marlins' young starters.
I love Billingsley, but this is Carl Crawford we are talking about. Obviously, a few other pieces would have to be added to the deal (NOT Broxton). I would sacrifice a cow to get Crawford in a Dodger uniform.

Couldn't Elbert replace Billingsley soon? That would be hard to pass up...

We just hosted a parent-teacher night for my daughter's preschool class. The discussion about one of the teachers, who did not attend, almost made the fury against Jim Tracy look like, well, child's play.

The preschool director even used the word "chemistry" several times.

131 I wouldn't place any bets on Elbert being ready earlier than 2008. If we lose Bills, we enter the season with Tomko and Hendrickson in the rotation. If something happens to Elbert, we're in trouble.

Do I think Jon's daughter is performing up to expectations? Well, she could be, but she still is in a situation where she colors outside the lines. You can't have a productive creative experience unless you color inside the lines. Am I disappointed that she hasn't been able to do this? Yes, but I think that the fault lies more with the parents than with the teacher.

132 Jon, that episode should be submitted to SI for its "Sign of the Apocalypse" or maybe its "They Said It" feature in the Scorecard section of the print edition.

Chemistry in pre-school? The public schools really are doomed. . .

134 Oh, gee, Bob, don't give me that kind of opening.

"The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings."

--From Julius Caesar (I, ii, 140-141)

124 - I say Kent for Marcus Thames. Kent and Sheff as teammates is worth the price of admission. I like Thames too

I hope people bet the over in the CSUN/Redlands game.

The Matadors won 159-97.

Meet the new world record holder for rattlesnakes in the mouth at one time (ten!), same as the old world record holder for rattlesnakes in the mouth at a time (eight).

http://tinyurl.com/uma82 (there's a picture; fair warning)

Dang I can only get 4. Back to training.

141.

The trick, I think, is to put them in there when they're just little babies, and let them grow.

Why not move Loney to the outfield? With Drew gone, we need outfield bats, and signing Nomar puts a good bat at first, allowing Loney to move to OF. With Loney and Ethier set, and Anderson able to fill in, then the Dodgers just need a good CF. Or they could get a LF/RF and have Loney and Ethier compete for the other corner OF, plus Loney can always get some ABs at 1B, with Nomar sliding over to 3B or taking the day off.

With the dearth of free agents available, I'd say Nomar is a good signing that gives the Dodgers a lot of flexibility.

Is Carl Crawford really that good? .830 OPS left fielder?

I don't really get the fascination with Crawford either, other than that he's young. From what I can see, his OBP and SLG are heavily dependent upon his BA, and he doesn't really get on base all that much. I didn't calculate them, but I'm guessing his ISOs aren't particularly impressive.

Nomar vs. Drew

So, Depo took a lot of flack for signing "injury-prone" DJ Drew. Will Ned take the same flack if he signs Nomar?

Average games/year 1999-2006

Nomar: 109
DJ: 118

RBIs are a funny thing. Drew reached 100 in a season for the first time in 2006, and that number is no doubt a big part of the reason why he and Boras think he can cash in on the market. I'm sure Boras has an entire glossy spreadout in DJ's book devoted to his 100 RBI. But if I'm a GM, I'm looking at the following:

DJ's ABs in the cleanup spot:

2002: 8
2003: 30
2004: 61
2005: 0
2006: 302

146-The question's rhetorical, right? No, he won't take that flack even if Nomar spends the entirety of both seasons on the DL. Nor, for some reason, do I think he should. I don't think DePodesta should've either, but...I can't possibly be alone in thinking these straw man how-come-Ned-gets-a-pass-where-DePodesta-didn't arguments are the littlest bit tiresome. There are also defensible (not just reactionary) reasons DePodesta was pilloried. And since he's no longer our GM, it's as well to move on and be glad if we resign Nomar, so long as it's not for loads and loads of time or money.

147
I realized it might be a little more meaningful to look at the percentage of DJ's ABs in the cleanup spot, rather than the actual number of ABs. Here goes:

2002: 1.9%
2003: 10.5%
2004: 11.8%
2005: 0.0%
2006: 61.1%

149
RBIs are a counting stat, so number of ABs is probably not so inappropriate.

150
True, but just looking at the number of ABs in the #4 spot obscures the overall number of ABs, which is also relevant for RBIs.

D4P - you should start your own anti-boras blogg but as many have already stated, we get your point. The man doesn't have 45 employee's just so he can make the highest offers and wait for results. His clients have access to the best lawyers, investment counselors, physical therapists, call girls, and anything else a young millionaire will need. You never hear of a Boras client penniless after leaving his sport because he was screwed by his agent/manager.

we get your point

Well, in this case, my point was really about RBIs and their dependence upon position in the lineup. It just so happened that Boras was relevant to the discussion as well...But I'm trying to stop the Boras rant...And I'm trying to stop the Ned vs. Depo stuff as well...But it's just so darn tempting...

145 - His contract is most appealing to me. He's signed for the next 4 years at about $29M (the last 2 years are club options).

He's got some flashy skills, and he could be one of these guys whose talent overcomes his discouraging peripherals.

It's not out of line to expect a .300 average, 60 extra base hits, and 60 steals to go with an .800+ OPS. If only he played a better outfield.

153 - What lineup spot tends to get the most RBIs? I don't know.

155
I don't know either. But just looking at DJ's 2002-2006 numbers (a very small sample size to be sure), the correlation between his RBIs and %ABs in #4 spot was over 0.7, which is very strong.

In general, my point was that some will say Drew's 2006 season was more impressive than his previous seasons because of his 100-RBI total. But, as I pointed out, 2006 was also the year where he had by far the most ABs in the #4 spot. It would be interesting to look at the % of ABs with runners on/in scoring position for different spots in the lineup, as a partial indicator of RBI chances. But I'm not sure if that info is available.

Here are Drew's % of ABs with runners on base:

2002: 42.7%
2003: 44.6%
2004: 47.5%
2005: 40.1%
2006: 51.2%

So, not only did he get by far his most ABs in the cleanup spot, but he also had his highest % of ABs with runners on base (over half of his ABs came with at least one runner on).

155 That was why I said we weren't losing 100 RBIs with Drew leaving. Whoever bats in his spot will drive about as many runs as he did. Kemp for instance, or even Ethier. It would be nice if one of you hyper-talented computer geniuses could substitute Ethier's at bats for Drew's over the course of the year and see if he wouldn't have driven in at least as many runs, given the same runners-in-scoring-position opportunities. Just my opinion...

I think the thing that everyone is missing with Crawford is his age. He's already accumulated almost 3000 at bats before the age of 25 in the major leagues and has improved every year. His OPS has moved from 670 to 830 during that time. If he continues the trend I don't think it is unrealistic to see a 900 OPS at age 27 going forward. This is not some slap hitting speedster, this guy has legitimate power and is built like a running back not a wide receiver. At his peak he could be a 25-30 HR guy with great baserunning skills and a superb LF. His stealing % is just about the best in baseball given the number of attempts(46/8 and 58/9) in the last two years.

If we'd signed Hochevar we'd been in position to trade pitching for him but with our current pitching staff I can't see us making the deal unless Zito or Schmidt end up in our rotation. The current salary blowup for pitchers is going to backfire on baseball general managers when in two years they look back and see a mess of these pitchers looking very much like Pavano.

If Drew took 35 walks instead of 90-100 you're talking another 15-20 RBI right there. I doubt 120 RBI and a .325 OBP would boost his asking price nowadays.

Lilly or Schmidt are the only two pitching free agents I'd like to see Ned go after.

161 I'd put Lilly in the Meche/Padilla class. Any of these guys would make a nice #3 in front of Kuo, Bills.

I'm a little afraid of Meche. He walks a lot, only started striking people out last year, and is most certainly a fly ball pitcher. And in this market, he won't come real cheap.

From ESPN Radio via mlbtraderumors.com:
The Pads are close to sending Jake Peavy to Atlanta for Marcus Giles, Horacio Ramirez and Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

Can't say that I would mind seeing Peavy leave the NL West.

164 - Wow. Good trade for the Braves.

Why are the Padres so eager to move Peavy? Wonder if it's his shoulder?

164-

I'll tip my cap to Towers on this one...not seeing Peavy as much would put a hop in my step.

Any rumors involving Flanders floating around today?

It really does seem strange considering the number of Peavy-like pitchers out there (very few). From what I heard at the end of last season, his shoulder was fine.

I dont get SD's stockpiling of catching prospects. Didn't they have 3 catchers on their roster last season (Piazza, Bard, some other dude)? They traded away their organizations top catcher to the Red Sox for Wells, now theyre picking up another one? I guess theyre not rock solid on the guys they have now other than Bard.

168 - They'd be replacing Kotteras with Salty as the catcher of the future, with Bard and Rob Bowen holding down the fort with the big club. Obviously Piazza is gone.

I feel better about their catching situation than LA's, which is woefully thin should anything happen to Russell.

The Pads need a 2nd Baseman?

Kent for Peavy!

Would love for us to pickup Zaun to backup Russ but I'm he'll get a full time platoon gig somewhere.

162
Meche and Padilla are fine as back of the rotation starters go but I'd hate to see us fork out the money for them. On the other hand I really think Lilly can be a front line starter who would thrive in Dodger stadium and the NL in general.

Seems like a small price to pay for Peavy given that Marcus Giles is free agent after 2007 and Salty was one of the bigger prospect busts of 2006 right after JtD.

Happy 31st Birthday Julio Lugo!

(ducks)

Apparently, from one of the Rays Korean fans, the Rays are going to sign Hee-Seop Choi to a minor league deal with a NRI to Spring Training.

We've got tons of 1B options already, does Choi bring anything to the table that gives him a viable chance at becoming our 1B?

does Choi bring anything to the table that gives him a viable chance at becoming our 1B?

We don't much about Choi around here...Was he that other guy we got in the Bill Murphy trade...?

174- he's a patient hitter whose power comes and goes. I've always thought of him as more of a gap hitter, but with his build, everyone expected him to hit 40 hr. His defense is pretty underrated. He has average range, but great hands. He does an excellent job of digging throws out of the dirt. I'd rather have him than Travis Lee.

that peavy rumor is complete BS. it was made up by someone on the mlb braves message board and it just swept across the internet like wildfire.

RIP Milton Friedman.

http://tinyurl.com/yhw895

174 The Cubs got Derrek Lee from the Marlins for Choi and a PTBNL. Ahem.

174
In November of 2005 you would have found 90% of DT posters who felt that Choi was a better option for 1st base then Nomar given his production and price, including myself. Most of us have felt that if Choi was given 500 at bats he'd give a line around 260/350/490. He's a streaky hitter who gets most of his counting stats during his hot streaks but even in a slump he used to walk quite a bit. He was a huge fan favorite whose name gave voice to the best chant of 2005. What happened to him in 2006 is a mystery as he completely fell apart. Hopefully he doesn't go the way of Josh Phelps and finds his way back to the major leagues garnering full time at bats.

Good luck with him, as Uncle Miltie said, I'd rather take a chance on him then have Travis Lee back.

Answering the Carl Crawford question, I think the reason some people want to grab him is that the scouts think he's got developing power, and his numbers have climbed every year he's been in the league. He also figures to age well.

Here's his OPS numbers by year, with his 2002 numbers removed because they were accumulated in 250 ABS.

03- .671
04- .781
05- .800
06- .830

I'm still not all that enthused by him. His walk rate is not likely to ever be that great, and his OPS numbers are almost entirely dependent on his slugging percentage. He's also primarily a ground ball hitter, so unless he starts getting the ball in the air more often, I don't expect his power numbers to rise THAT dramatically.

Boy, what is this place coming to? You toss a flaming Hee-Seop Choi right smack onto the middle of the table and you still can't stir up any kind of conflagration?

Next thing you know, it'll be Jason Phillips Memorial Friday and Bob will be tearing up a little as he recalls that gamer Jason playing first base with a catcher's mitt just to save the team a few pennies on the extra glove.

his OPS numbers are almost entirely dependent on his slugging percentage

Which in turn seems to depend heavily upon his batting average (a la Andre Ethier)

183-

Right. I'm also a little skeptical of Ethier's ability to replicate last season's success.

184
His production had already begun to decline quite significantly in the 2nd half of last season.

Pre-All Star: .352/.403/.545/.948
Post-All Star: .277/.337/.429/.766

184 - Including his late-season fall-off, his overall numbers ended up being not so impressive:

His .842 OPS ranked 9th out of 12 NL LFers.
His 162-game projection would give him 25 doubles, 15 HR's and 70 RBI's.

If he doesn't improve on (or at least replicate) last year's numbers, LA is in trouble.

185

his second half numbers are skewed by his horrible september. he basically hit the rookie wall then since before this season, he has never endured or played in that many games before.

july: .362/.407/.617

august: .316/.339/.465

september: .143/.311/.163

ZIPS believes in ethier for next year. why cant you!

182 - LOL

181- Crawford's power is clearly developing. He has more of a loft in his swing. Crawford is also extremely strong for a speedster. It's hard to see it because he wears thermal shirts. Crawford is 6'2 220. He's the best defensive left fielder in baseball. His arm strength is average (the only weak part of his defense). Crawford would make an excellent center fielder. Crawford's 25 years old and has improved a certain facet of his game every year. Before a late season slump, Crawford was slugging .500. Crawford is a phenomenal athlete (had scholarships for baseball, basketball, and football) who is turning his tools into actual production.

187
Andre's ZIPS' projections really aren't all that great.

.296/.366/.463/.829, with 16 HRs and 72 RBI. Not horrible, but not really any better than his 2006 season, and probably not so great compared to other leftfielders.

As I see it, those kind of numbers are kind of in between what I would expect from a #3 and a #4 outfielder...

189-

How do you figure that he's getting more loft in his swings? He actually hit more ground balls last year (06), then he did in either (04) or (05).

He's clearly better than KLoft, but I would not trade very much for him, or at least not what TB is likely asking for.

190

and what is wrong with his current level of production compared to his salary? Nothing at all. all im saying is, some of you guys dont trust ethier to replicate last years numbers, ZIPS thinks he can using its historical data.

Now you complain, "oh, but...his original numbers arent even that good."

way to change the argument. Either way, the production combined with the 400k salary is worth it.

192-

His BABIP, even after his huge end-season slump, was still abnormally high though, wasn't it?

How is ZIPS calculating its predictions?

How is ZIPS calculating its predictions?

minor league record, historical comps, future performance indicators such as walk rate, k rate, etc.

its like BP's Pecota but just created by someone different.

His BABIP, even after his huge end-season slump, was still abnormally high though, wasn't it?

it was .348. which is still on the high side but not totally absurd.

Would anybody (other than the fascistic D4P) not take, in a second, Ethier repeating his 2006? I would. I'd sell him if the price was right, but if he really is good for .296/.366/.463, ain't nothing wrong with that. Especially if he can move to right, to accommodate Burrell.

Even if his final numbers last year were lucky BABIPwise, he's still young enough that he could reasonably be expected to improve luck-neutral. Ethier isn't a problem. If he gets flipped for something better, or if he doesn't, the kid's alright.

191- How do you figure that he's getting more loft in his swings?
I watched him play...

I saw about 30 Devil Rays games last year. Early in the season, Crawford was driving the ball. Instead the balls going into the gaps, they were going over the wall. Crawford seemed to realize that he had some untapped power and made minor adjustments to his swing. The results were great. This was despite that fact that Crawford was dealing with a pretty severe wrist injury. Later in the season, he seemed to tire down. He had more of a slashing-like swing. His power deteriorated. Instead of driving the ball, Crawford was slapping into the gaps. He was still able to accumulate a number of extra base hits, but the early season power wasn't there. I believe that Crawford has a lot of untapped potential. You really have to see him play to realize what a special talent he is.

fascistic D4P

Fascizzle, my nizzle

I saw about 30 Devil Rays games last year.

This is exactly why I don't gamble. Losing the kind of bet you must have, would be intolerable, to me.

198- Decision day in the D4P household. Will he or won't he? Official start time looks to be 8:35, though I thought Earl was going to be 40 minutes long, too? Anyway, the world waits with bated breath. . .

199. Ouch, we're not that bad...

200
I see that tonight's "The Office" is an hour long. Is it always an hour long, or is this just an Extra Special Episode...?

201 -- So claimed countless thousands as you were rooking us blind over and over again.

201- Well, you won't be forever, anyway. Heck, if Jackson, and Choi, and JtD all pan out for you, I might end up changing my allegiances.

202- Forty minutes was what I saw, over and over, in commercials for it. I don't know why NBC does this, but every once in a while they make the shows longer. So. Bonus!

Bonus!

Don't believe everything you're told, Andrew. The extra time is probably comprised solely of commercials...Those sneaky fatherless-sons...

This is tonight's NBC schedule, courtesy of NBC.com:

8:00 My Name Is Earl
8:36 The Office
9:20 30 Rock
10:01 ER

Round those times off at your own peril.

I would not want to be working the Tivo customer service phones tonight.

When NBC did this before, my DV-R handled it with aplomb.

If they're just padding this episode with commercials, it will be an outrage of Beimelian proportions.

210 - The amount of commercials over the three hours figures to be constant.

I'm starting a new chat thread at Screen Jam soon.

I'm starting a new chat thread at Screen Jam soon

Sigh, looks like I'll be by myself again tonight...

Looks like I ended up chasing people away from both sites.

212 Hey man, I'm here with you.

On a daily basis here at OSU I run into jerks wearing Dodger hats, but who tell me they aren't Dodger fans. Today I ran into a very nice young man who, wearing a Dodger hat, is a real Dodger fan. We talked for some time, lamenting the Piazza trade. He didn't think Colletti should re-sign Nomar.

This is what Drew opted-out for??? According to Ben Maller (Is he a lame duck?), someone is offering one million a year more plus one more year. Colletti probably would have done that, unless he had already made up his mind to "encourage" Drew to leave...
The Red Sox aren't through yet. Multiple sources say they are set to sign free-agent outfielder J.D. Drew, the Phillies' old amigo, for a 4-year, $48 million deal

this would be cool..

2007 mlb draft

20. Boston Red Sox (drew)
21. Toronto Blue Jays (lugo)
22. Los Angeles Dodgers
23. San Diego Padres (maddux)

4 straight first round picks. rad!

215 - He's only received one offer, and it's already better than what he opted out for. Wait 'til the bidding really gets going. I'd say he's doing quite well so far.

216 - What happens if (when) Boston signs both Lugo and Drew?

216 Please don't mention that name again, he is a non-person.

218

we get their first round pick for drew and their second round pick for lugo to go along with 2 1st round compensation picks i think.

Please don't mention that name again, he is a non-person.

that non person is going to get us 2 draft picks.

It will be the first decent thing he has done for us but it won't bring Guzman back...

A couple of NRI if anyone's interested, according to Dodgers.com

C - Ken Huckaby, 35
RHP - Travis Smith, 34

Huckaby can throw people out at least:
Career CS-att: 34-99 (.343 CS rate)
2004-2006: 13-33 (.393 CS rate)

He was originally a 22nd round draft pick in 1991 for LA and left after 1997 as a minor league free agent

Drew's asking price is 4 years/$56 million, according to ESPN.com's Insider.

222

with the way guzman has been regressing, i might rather have the two logan white picked top draftees.

Can't say I am surprised to see Drew as a Red Sox.

If Drew does end up a Red Sox, imagine how he will feel if the the Red Sox fans get on him for his demeanor.

i'm not crazy about any of the FA hitters. I'd rather see Colletti pull some magic and trade for Crawford AND Church. With Ethier and Kemp and maybe Anderson or Repko, our outfield would be set. Maybe sign Nomar for third and if LaRoche beats him out, then he relieves anywhere in the infield. Trade for Dave Ross and all we have to worry about is pitching.

228 - Dave Ross? Somehow I think Cincy is gonna keep him because he owns GABP

We signed a couple of journeymen to minor league deals:

http://tinyurl.com/yc46ls

C Ken Huckaby and RHP Travis Smith

Argh! I forgot to set my Tivo for The Office (I keep forgetting to add it to my list) and have a late soccer game after work. Damn. I expect you guys to reenact the episode for me later, verbatim, doing the female parts too. Thanks.

230 The catcher sounds familiar...

I {{heart}} Huckaby!

No, but seriously, wasn't he halfway decent at one point? All field, no hit maybe...

228
I do not think we need both Crawford and Church if we are keeping Ethier and Kemp.

220- Is Mark Loretta supposed to reup with Boston? He's a type A, so, if he doesn't re-sign, would we get their Loretta pick, plus their regular pick, or just their first and second round regular picks? What if they take Baez, too? If Boston helps screw up what's left to screw up of our six first round pick draft, there will be consequences.

232- basically. He's got a career batting line of .222/.256/.281, but he's a decent defensive catcher (39.3% CS over the last 3 years)

233- Church, eh? Probably a 20 homer guy over the season with decent ISO patience but also a lot of K's. But hey, perhaps after the success of Marlon Anderson, Colletti will decide to trade more with the Nats than with the D-Rays.

Think they'd be interested in a veteran left-handed starter who had one of the best ERAs of a lefty in the American League last year?

I know this is a bit off topic. But I just read the Vin Scully interview and was so glad he is going to keep going. I was reminded that there was a move at one point to try to make Lou Brock the father of the modern stolen base (Totally neglecting Maury wills). Does anyone else remember this.
What was up, anyway?

236 Is he under 30?

In other minor league free agent news, the Dodgers re-signed Wilkin Ruan, but lost Ben Kozlowski, who signed with the Yankees.

Regarding the interest in Drew, Los Angeles GM Ned Colletti said the Dodgers had not filed tampering charges against any club. However, he did not rule out the possibility that Los Angeles would in the future.

http://tinyurl.com/yj4run

12. Jonathan Meloan, rhp, Mesa (Dodgers)

The Dodgers held Meloan back in extended spring training due to a minor ulnar nerve problem, and he didn't make his debut until May at low Class A Columbus. But considering the missed time, Meloan didn't skip a beat, finishing the season in Double-A with 3-1, 1.90 numbers with a remarkable 91-16 strikeout-walk ratio in just 52 innings across three levels. Meloan sits in the 92-93 mph range with his fastball, topping out at 95. But the 22-year-old has an impressive repertoire overall--with a hard, late-biting 88-90 mph slider, a power 80-82 mph curveball and an above-average changeup. A 2005 fifth-rounder out of Arizona, Meloan can sometimes recoil backward too much in his delivery, which throws off his command. The Dodgers tried throwing him on consecutive days in the AFL--once getting him in three games in a row--to see how he responded in hopes he can battle for a bullpen job in 2007.

Meloan and his Scouting report from the AFL.

The LA Times is reporting that the Dodgers are set to re-sign Nomar to a multi year deal.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dodgers17nov17,1,5032447.story

Pardon my asking, but what does "JtD" stand for? I keep seeing that when Guzman is mentioned, always wondered what it meant.

243

Joel the Destroyer. it was our nickname for him when he was, you know, part of our future plans.

i dont want nomar back! arghhh.

244- He's a doubles hitter in the Dominican, did his power leave with Beltre's "juice"?

246

his power was severely lacking last year as well. Hes an enigma. I just saw his dominican stats since he is on the same team as kemp and i was checking up on him. It seems like Guzman still doesnt wanna work on his plate discipline with a .22 ISOd and a 3:17 bb/k ratio in 94ABs. At the Ks are reasonable.

No, he just doesn't seem to center the ball in real games compared to his BP sessions which were legendary. He's a huge man, you'll laugh when you see him and realize he was a SS at AA.

i dont want nomar back!

I don't either.

The deal would be for two or three years and would call for a significantly higher base salary than he received last year, when he played for a guaranteed $6 million and earned another $2.5 million in incentives based on plate appearances

Colletti has high regard for players who want to wear the Dodgers uniform rather than simply seek the biggest contract on the market.

249 Well, I look forward to the reports of the bigger contract offers that Nomar turned down to stay with the Dodgers.

Colletti has high regard for players who want to wear the Dodgers uniform rather than simply seek the biggest contract on the market.

Whereas all other GMs like to pay a lot more for players who really want to be elsewhere.

250-1
Yeah, no doubt Nomar is giving a large "hometown discount" to stay in LA...

Why waste Loney's defense in the outfield? I do not like re-signing Nomar to play first at all, especially if we give him three years.

If Nomar's contract is for three years, I'm thinking that Loney might be on the way to another city.

I'd rather see Nomar at third and Loney at first.

Anybody know how good an outfielder Loney is?

I keep reading this and having a hard time believing Bob didn't write it.

http://tinyurl.com/yzrun5

253 - 'Zackly.

Because Nomar "wants to wear the Dodger uniform," the Dodgers are giving him a multiyear deal they otherwise wouldn't do, they are limiting the incentives because they think he'll try to play hurt but could in fact send him to the DL more frequently, they are giving him first base to minimize his injury risk, and they are essentially blocking a very promising and apparently ready first base prospect.

Good thing this is all just a hypothetical.

That said, this really isn't all bad. Nomar is useful, but unless he's headed to the outfield (or another infield move is made), he is not what this team needs to spend its money on right now.

If I thought Nomar could actually play the outfield with out breaking down even sooner, I would be fine with it, but putting him at first is stupid. He has limited range at first and as the season progressed got much worse at scooping the ball because of his injuries. Why block our prospects? Nomar's body just seems to be breaking down.

Kemp is the only guy who I think needs a stop gap at his position. I think the other guys are ready to take over.

252- yea, it will be for $12 million a year with the Dodgers rather than $12.5 million with the Orioles. I'm going to be pretty angry if this moves forces Loney to the bench. If Nomar played 2B and Kent was traded, then I'd have no problem with this deal.

(Sixty-nine word sentence up there. Poorly written though it is, let this sentence serve as evidence of my plans to drop a 140-word bomb by the start of the new year. I am the Iran of run-on sentences.)

If signing Nomar means not signing Lee or Soriano, then opportunity cost alone makes it money well spent.

Ned basically said they won't even try for Lee, but we will still go after Soriano. The question is will the Angels or Phillies offer more money for him.

The fact that Nomar could play any of the positions mentioned, along with his bat, makes him valuable -- never mind the not-insignificant PR value.

263
He could play those positions, but will probably just be stuck at 1st base that is the problem. If they had him be a super utility guy it would be a lot better.

The fact that Nomar could play any of the positions mentioned

Is that really a "fact"? He wasn't very good at 1B, and the outfield would probably be too rough on his body (not to mention that he has never played there before).

265 Define "not very good." He had 4 errors in 1124 total chances, a field percentage of .996. And if I recall correctly, at least a couple of those could easily have been assigned to whoever was throwing to him.

266
Well, I was looking at his Rate2 of 93. Granted, Loney's was 88...

I am the only one who thought Nomar played a pretty good 1B. He has a soft glove and dug out balls pretty good. His range isn't what it used to be, but it isn't worse than most 1st baseman and it isn't all that important at that position anyway.

We should keep Loney however. Can use him in the outfield even if that isn't ideal and he would still get 30 games at 1st base when Nomar needs time off and when Nomar DH's. Also, that "assumes" Nomar stays healthy all year, which is all but impossible. We need the insurance, and I don't really like Kent at 1st as it blows a hole in the lineup. Still need 2 outfielders. I'd like Alou and Wells personally. If Alou breaks down, we go with Kemp

267
Nomar had far more games than Loney, so it works much better.

This is ridiculous. Nomar should not be brought back at all, but if he is to be brought back, it should be for no more than a year, and to play somewhere other than first base. If Colletti is saying Nomar is too brittle to play anywhere but first, then that is an argument to not bring him back period.

268 - Rightly or wrongly, the conventional wisdom was that Nomar played a great first base, so you weren't the only one.

As long as Arte is lowering beer prices and has Bill Plaschke to satisfy, there is no way he will let us outbid him for Soriano, so I don't worry about him very much. Carlos Lee was just attainable enough to be dangerous, so so much the better to 262. Ethier should play left field. The end.

Defensively Nomar was just fine in his 1st year at 1st base but he just isn't enough of an offensive upgrade over Loney anymore to be worth the cost. I hate to agree with the majority of DT posters here but this is probably a bad deal.

Loney should be able to handle RF okay since he's got average speed and a pitchers arm but if we were to enter the year with Nomar at 1st and Loney in RF our power would start to rival the pop gun Jerry Remy Angels of yesteryear unless Ned reels in a slugger for LF or CF.

he just isn't enough of an offensive upgrade over Loney anymore to be worth the cost

Yeah, but Ned did the math, and found that

Nomar's offense + Desire to wear Dodger uniform >= Nomar's salary - Loney's salary

I'll have to see how much of a hometown discount Nomar gives us for me to determine exactly what I think of it. Given what some of these other contracts might go for, in the end it might not be a bad deal. I am worried about Nomar's second half, as he was pretty bad. However, overall he was our heart and soul, and probably a real good guy to have in the clubhouse for the young guys.

As for Drew, I won't miss him much even though we now need someone just like him now. I just hated him having to sit down every fifth game. His power was a little disappointing this year as well. We'll see how we replace him though. I am going to hate even more giving up solid young guys like Broxton to replace him.

As for Drew, I won't miss him much even though we now need someone just like him now. I just hated him having to sit down every fifth game

Will you hate having Nomar sit down every fifth game?

276

Not really. Nomar is a gamer and will play hurt. With Drew, it was sometimes a wonder. I have to question his passion. With Nomar, he is willing to take a discount to come back. Drew opted out his contract to go after a little bit more money. At least with Nomar sitting down, we should have Loney to sub in. Also, I am under the assumption that we are getting Nomar for less than the $11M we were paying Drew.

BTW, that contract was the worst thing Depo ever did. Either way, the Dodgers were going to lose - If Drew was terrible we were stuck with a huge contract. If he did great, he opted out, and now that he did about as expected (maybe even a little worse) he still opted out. If it was to see how he would like Pasadena and LA, that is why players can demand trades. Boras really pulled one on an inexperienced Depo.

I'd love to see Nomar back, at least you know what to expect from him while he's healthy. Not a liability in the field or at the plate.

With Loney, who knows? I seem to remember a lot of people being pretty high on Hollandsworth at one point as well...

Unless he plays second (and Kent is dealt) or left field, I hate this Nomar deal.

Hate it.
Hate it.
Hate it.

If Drew was terrible we were stuck with a huge contract...Boras really pulled one on an inexperienced Depo

First of all, all contracts are risky. If the player sucks or gets hurt, you're stuck with a bad contract. Just two years after the contract was signed, $11 million/year for JD Drew looks like a huge bargain.

Second, Drew and his agent wanted a no-trade clause. Depo didn't give it. As a result, had Drew not opted out, Depo (or Ned) could have traded Drew if they weren't happy with him. They weren't totally stuck.

It looks like USC will beat USC in the Galen Center opening.

280

It is true you are stuck with someone if they go bad, but at least on a normal contract you get to keep them if they do well and you are getting a bargain. With this opt out, we were going to lose in any scenario. If he was a complete bust, we might not have been able to trade a big contract like that and even if we could we would have got little back (in other words, we would lose under this scenario as well).

So did the gamecocks win the right to be called the only USC?

278 -- Perhaps you remember people being high on Pedro Martinez an