Okay, I don't have a problem with La Roche getting a real shot to win the job this spring, and clearly third-base is his property for the next ten years if he wants it, but are they really putting that much stock in Betemit's first four lousy, meaningless, spring at-bats?

I kind of hope this "sense" is Tony Jackson's more than Collittle's.

I really do think this is just a reporter getting ahead of himself, especially when there really isn't that much real "news" at this point in ST.

Word also was that Colletti was irritated at LaRoche last ST, so seeing him catapulting that far ahead is premature to say the least. Heck, remember how quickly the talk of him playing the OF died?

WWSH

Great point, Jon.

The popularity of "Moneyball" has lessened the emphasis on having good defense. Though the book has some good ideas, putting less importance on defense was not one.

(Make sure speakers are on)

I slipped and fell right before listening to that for better effect.

Should I be pleased that the Rams signed Drew Bennett?

I think Drew Bennett, who never got to play QB because of Cade McNown, can use the sound in 12 anytime he speaks to McNown.

i dont understand why they didnt just re-sign kevin curtis.

I think she said she wearing a t-shirt and shorts. I'll keep an eye out for someone matching that description.

The leaders are on a 2:09 pace.

I really like Curtis, but they seemed to think Curtis was bolting anyway (he probably wants to start somewhere). Bennett is also a lot bigger than the rest of the Rams receivers, which could help with their red-zone struggles.

19
Has a team ever struggled as mightily in the red-zone as the Rams have over the past 5 years or so? I've never seen anything like it. Between the 20s, they've been incredible. But once in the red-zone, it's all field goals.

"O'Neil drops back to pass..."

Lather.

Rinse.

Repeat.

I don't know if I'm more infuriated by their red-zone issues or their continued and apparently unending struggles covering kickoffs and punts.

Bennett, at 6-5 206 lbs., is the biggest wide-receiver to play for the Rams since they moved in '95. He's also supposed to be a good run blocker.

Actually, I think my mom bought the ticket for me...

unending struggles covering kickoffs and punts

Ridiculous. I thought all the tomfoolery would end once they (finally) canned Martz, but I guess old habits are hard to break.

Picked him up for Juan Pierre, Olmedo and Tomko in the second week in April. Oh video games, you so crazy. Sounds like all those trades we bandy about here with no basis in reality.

Quien es mas macho: Sr. Lowe o Senor Tomko...

Okay, definitely avoiding the Tomko start. Braves it is.

Repko-RF
Lieberthal-C
Garciaparra-1B
Kent-2B
Gonzalez-LF
Kemp-CF
Betemit-3B
Martinez-SS
Lowe-P

I always think there's too much emphasis on naming some guy a "Number 1". I'd rather just not have anyone who is a "Number 5." I'd rather have five 2 1/2s.

Ah, math never was Nigel's best subject.

Since most reputable publications employ columnists from the left and the right, we should lobby Dodgers.com to publish a pro-sabermetrics writer.

Also, just remember that Lance Carter and Brett Tomko were the 2006 Spring Training MVPs before you start caring about what's happening.

Why? Because I want Nomar off first base. Loney will catch most of Nomar's sinking one hoppers pitched at him from third base.

If Nomar is going to be injured this year let's get it over with sooner than later. As it is we are just waiting for the second shoe to drop anyway. Hopefully Ned won't panic and make a knee-jerk trade should Nomar get injured.

jermaine dye 2006

No, LuGo would already have been on the bench anyway. I'd put him in center in place of Repko, flanked by Ethier and Loney

dyes tools and physical traits are alot like kemps and they have similar minor league numbers. Jermaine Dye is just one possible player Kemp can turn into.

SIU will still get in and likely be a pretty high seed. Maybe a #4 or #5.

Meanwhile, please, don't start concluding things about any players based on Spring Training performance.

Btw, missed your bro's thing at Wonder-Con yesterday - got stuck in another thing and then had to leave early after spending too much on comic stuff (an original Simpsons animatic for one!) Hope he had fun. Saw Brad Bird and Patton Oswalt introduce Ratatouille though.

Boy (x2), I smell bad. Just played soccer. Need shower. Must leave before I offend.

Thankfully most of them aren't coming in to the library.

I think everyone here would be happy if those were kemp's averages when hes 23-26 or so.

Btw, did anyone catch these two items in the new minor league report on Dodgers.com?

"Kyle Orr, a fourth-round pick, is a left-handed hitter with power. He signed in October after competing for the Canadian Junior Olympic Team. The Dodgers will initially try him in the outfield, although at 6-foot-5 he might wind up at first base."

"Jumbo Diaz, known for his size and his fastball, is slimmed down and close to throwing again after a second elbow operation. Diaz has lost an estimated 40 pounds and is making regular bullpen sessions."

Is this an attempt to say something about her, or an attempt to say nothing and only make it seem like something?

This is another one of those arguments where I don't think there's really that much difference in the positions. Do anti-moneyballers really think defense is every bit as important as offense? Or that the difference between the best defender and the worst defender is anything like as great as the difference between the best and worst hitters?

Koyie Hill is in camp with the Cubs. And he just threw out a runner trying to steal third. Was he traded, or a minor league FA?

There are times I agree with Sarah, and times I disagree with her. If she read my stuff, I assume she'd feel the same about me.

Yet I still don't like the idea of the double error!

>>> Penny knows place, and it's OK
By Steve Henson, Times Staff Writer
March 4, 2007

Manager Grady Little "is great about asking, and I told him that as far as I'm concerned, it doesn't matter if I'm number two, three, four or five," Penny said.

http://tinyurl.com/2hs75d <<<

What determines whether this kind of attitude is viewed as:

1. that of an unselfish team player willing to do whatever is asked of him, or
2. that of a guy who lacks fire and motivation and the will to win, so much so that he's indifferent as to his place in the rotation?

But he's still sober enough to make Steve Lyons look like Gallager.

Whether you like Brad Penny or not

Hopefully we can win a game in the playoffs.

I'm not looking forward to him fighting CroCop...

Yeah it was really exciting. From the opening seconds Randy gave a reason for everyone to go insane. The cool thing is that the bar I go to gets a lot of Bay Area fighters. I was talking with a guy that does MMA for a living and he was just so pumped for Randy and was making all these crazy bets hoping for Randy. He was just ecstatic as Randy nailed Sylvia in the opening seconds.

I'd rather have Randy "retire" again than lose to CroCop.

I love Steve Phillips.

"There's a rhythm and a flow that happens to a team when things are going well. When you're scoring runs, when you're playing well -- pitchers who work too quickly sometimes get their hitters out of a flow; they work too slowly, they get out of the flow. And when you have a star on the mound, sometimes everybody stands around and watches. Roger Clemens shut out nine times last year when he pitched for the Astros -- shut out seventeen times. I just think it's about the environment that the pitcher creates!"

This is an absolute fabrication, as Bob knows from the SABR convention.

well .... the alternatives in the NL West aren't that watchable, are they?

Also, I emailed them the Princeton study and Phil Birnbaum's PPT from SABR 36.

From Cubs website:

>>> Date Transaction

11/16/06 Acquired LHP Neal Cotts from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for RHP David Aardsma and LHP Carlos Vasquez; Signed RHP Jason Anderson, RHP Ben Howard, LHP Les Walrond, RHP John Webb, C Koyie Hill and INF Jason Smith to Minor League contracts and invited them to Spring Training. <<<

He doesn't know anything about college basketball. He just knows a lot more about math and odds.

He has told me that "The Newlywed Game" has one of the fairest scoring systems among game shows.

Or have you forgotten?

Everyone to Marty's house in July!

Can anyone predict the headine about four days from now?

Eric Gagne will probably not throw in a game until mid-March. He has thrown off a mound but is on a different pace than other Ranger pitchers. While everyone else is throwing every other day, Gagne throws every third day. Gagne is also being more selective about how much pitchers' fielding practice he participates in. He is trying to keep his back healthy.

Since his dominating run for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2002-04, when he converted 84 straight saves and won an NL Cy Young Award, Gagne has had three operations and pitched only 15 1/3 innings. The right-hander had as many surgeries as appearances (two) last year.

If Penny goes against another teams fourth pitcher 75% of the time he will probably have more wins that if he were to be matched 75% of the time against the other team's best pitcher.

When the season is over and if Penny has more wins than any other Dodger pitcher he will look like the ace of the staff.

Furcal, Repko, Ethier, Garciapara, Loney, Kent, Gonzo, Martin.

I'll watch on your recommendation. The title is funny at least.

154
Yeah. Fox is always pimping stupid new stuff to replace its good old stuff

155
Good Lifetime movie tonight...

It will be very interesting to find out how bad it is.

Or is Wolf entitled to the 4, and Billz/Kuo are battling for the 5th?

I really dont think Billingsley would learn much by pitching in Vegas again. He might regress the same way Edwin Jackson did. I dont think it helps young pitchers to bring them up for an extended period, then send them back down to AAA the following season. Billingsley will learn more at the MLB level. I think Kuo will too. Hopefully both make the team.

1. Lowe
2. Schmidt
3. Penny
4. Kuo
5. Billingsley
6. Broxton
7. Saito

Pitchers who should probably make the team:
8. Wolf

Pitchers who should be battling for the last 3-4 spots:
9. Beimel
10. Dessens
11. Hamulack
12. Hendrickson
13. Tomko
14. Tsao
15. All others in the mix

Probably a few other things as well, which I'm forgetting

BTW: What is on your list of "Things D4P Likes"...?

I laughed through most of it.

"Nobody pajaminates me!"

"I can give you a peppy vamp and I can counterpoint it with ...
NO COUNTERPOINT! JUST GIMME A VAMP!"

Puh-lease

1. According to Jim
2. Friends
3. Anything "reality" related
4. W&G
5. The never-ending onslaught of homogenous hospital, lawyer, and police shows
6. The list goes on and on

I understand. My "The Simpsons" experience is probably different from most around here, in that I didn't start watching until around 1997 or so. As a result, I never built up the lofty expectations that long-time viewers probably did.

Courtney Thorne-Smith is the wife on that show. If you can forget everything else about it, and just focus on that one part..Its really not that bad.

And then came Melrose Place but Heather Lockler took the main blonde role in that show.

I've dug her ever since.

It's not a particularly good movie, but it is on the cable every thirty minutes.

That's crazy talk. Summer School rocks.

Wondermutt...

Andrew just said that because he's embarrassed about knowing (and liking) so many crappy movies, given that he thrashes me for still liking "The Simpsons"

I still like "The Simpsons."

You're OK by me.

Oh, and the number of competitors is up to 10 in the Griddle contest. Man, economic incentives work!

Wow, just wow.

http://tinyurl.com/292wp2

He only has one particular pitch.

Please Explain: John Travolta

"It's like, so weird..."

"It's like he ate a plate a tacos, or somethin'"

"It's like, Bruce Willis is talkin', but, it's like, the baby's talkin', it's like, so weird..."

(You should hear me say this: I crack myself up)

saito
broxton
tomko
beimel
tsao
billingsley

that should be sufficient as hendrickson and dessens are traded.

even if he plays awful and laroche plays plays great his spring, i think the ideal situation is for betemit to begin the year as the starter with a hugely motivated laroche in AAA licking his chops.

Meanwhile, Billz just got my favorite breakfast cereal-baseball player, Coco Crisp.

Good ol' Billz.

Betemit cant hit lefties.

And Pierre just stole 2nd.

Not cool Ichiro stat: Never .460 SLG, only once OBP above .400 and had to hit .372 to do it.

He managed to be a below average hitter for his position last year (13th best OPS among 16 RF with 450 ABs ahead of Shawn Green, Brian Giles and Jeff Francoeur) despite hitting .328.

Who had the better year? I mean, even by traditional standards, surely when the batting averages are that close the huge power difference would make Player A more valuable. Yet Ichiro won the MVP over Giambi in 2000. I am betting it was because of his laser arm, and the intangibles he brought on the base paths.

Look at runs and RBIs too. Giambi just crushed him and yet lost.
Ichrio 127 runs, 69 RBI
Giambi 109 runs, 120 RBI in 70 less PA.

I guess he was juicing at the time, but still.

Baseball Reference tells me two things:

First, you probably mean 2001.

Second, Seattle won 14 more games than Oakland that year (a ridiculous 116-102). Not that that should necessarily have mattered, but I'm sure it did.

http://tinyurl.com/3dqevh

Throngs that had gathered to witness the spectacle wore masks, goggles, and even motorcycle helmets to protect themselves from the pollution.

But it is for a good cause! Getting your name in a record book of useless records.

The argument is made by some that stealing bases, speed, etc. is "exciting" to watch. But when you think about it, I can run, and so can most people. I've seen plenty of people running before, both on and off the baseball field.

So I ask: is it really that exciting to watch someone run?

http://tinyurl.com/35wdg3

Only someone named Forrest.............

Good times.

I think it was Troll book orders....always got the Guinness Book and a Garfield book.......classic.

That's cause you're not a chick...

Whatever!

316 I dunno, I mean, maybe, and I think if Drew specifically wanted a no-trade clause added I could understand that. But wanting a long extension for an injury prone player... I can understand both sides of it but don't think it's fair to call it bad business on Colletti's part.

Speaking of roses by other names, is there any difference between "opt-out" and "player option"? J. D. Drew, in essence, elected not to exercise his option on the rest of the contract. Teams frequently choose not to exercise their option on a player's contract. Player's agents, however, are smart enough to realize that there is value there and negotiate a cost to the team if they choose not to exercise their option. So why was J. D. Drew's opt-out/option free ? (Sure, he would have left anyway, but at least he'd provide some of LuGo's inflated salary.)