On the front page of yesterday’s Times was a lengthy story about the latest threat to the (fictional) sanctity of professional sports. Watch out folks: It’s the Viagra threat. According to the World Anti-Doping Agency, the infamous blue pill offers to benefits to athletes that could lend the impotency drug more performance-enhancing capabilities than Pfizer’s researchers ever intended. Rafael Palmeiro, the now-disgraced ex-Major Leaguer, once served as pitch man for the drug. Oops.
Open Thread: Yanks interested in Perez?
The Yanks are pretty desperate for pitching, it’s no secret, but just how desperate are they? Apparently desperate enough to offer a contract to Perez. Oh, and not Oliver Perez. Odalis Perez.
Urge to kill, rising.
On the surface, it’s one of those “what the hell are they thinking” moves. He was barely average in the NL last year, posting a 101 OPS+ (which is actually better than Oliver’s 100) after starting Opening Day for the Nats. He’s allowed nearly three baserunners for every two innings pitched in his career, and last year was the first time he eclipsed the 140 IP mark in four years. It’s just not something you like to hear.
But chillax people. If the Yanks did make an offer (the original article is in espanol, so something may have been lost in translation), it’s not to front the rotation. They’re not going to pass on CC Sabathia or Ben Sheets or AJ Burnett or Derek Lowe if Perez agrees to a deal. If anything, they’re just exploring all options and casting a wide net. Hey, he’s better than Ponson, right?
Sit back, relax, and enjoy the football game tonight. Don’t worry about Odalis Perez. The Hot Stove is chock full o’ rumors that never come to fruition, and until we see some more definitive reports, don’t concern yourself with this one. If you want something to worry about, worry about how embarrassing it’ll be for tommiesmithjohncarlos if Ryan Grant picks up the 40 measly yards I need to beat him in fantasy this week even though Brandon Jacobs didn’t play yesterday.
Here’s your open thread for the night. Talk Pack-Saints, Haht Stove, stuffing recipes, whatever you like. Just keep it civilized.
Hideki to skip WBC again
Hideki Matsui, projected to be the Yanks’ DH in 2009, will not be participating in the WBC, Ken Davidoff reported over the weekend. While a very big celebrity in Japan, Matsui is rehabbing another knee surgery, and the Yanks are not so keen on his playing during the tournament. As Davidoff notes, Matsui’s decision to opt out of the tournament in 2006 upset his fellow countrymen and baseball officials. This year, however, the 34-year-old will focus on getting and staying healthy.
As expected, CC offer not going anywhere
Hal Steinbrenner cause a mini ruckus last week when he said, in regards to CC Sabathia, that: “We made an offer. It’s not going to be there forever.” That sounds like a pretty Hank-ian statement, reminiscent of his “Hughes is on the table, but only for two days” ultimatum towards Minnesota last off-season. Thankfully, Jon Heyman puts the statement into the proper perspective, citing someone within the Yanks organization. No, it won’t be on the table forever, but they won’t pull the offer anytime soon. So can we please just forget Hal ever opened his mouth?
2009 Draft Order Tracker snafu
I received an email from fellow MLB Draft watcher Travis Orton, who mentioned that I may have been treating the compensation picks for unsigned draft picks incorrectly in our 2009 Draft Order page. I was under the impression that the comp picks are essentially “invisible,” and do not effect the overall number sequencing (i.e. #8, #9, #9A, #10, #11), however Travis pointed out that last year the comp picks were counted towards the overall numbering. This is significant because my methodology pushes a comp pick back one spot for every comp pick that comes before it, meaning the Crow pick pushed the Fields pick back one spot, which then pushed the Cole pick back two spots, etc.
So Travis and I exchanged you’re an idiot, I’m right friendly emails, and eventually took it Baseball America‘s Jim Callis, who confirmed with MLB that the comp picks do count towards the overall, meaning I’ve been accounting for them incorrectly. I’ve updated the page to reflect the correct order and numbering, while Jim has an updated draft order in today’s AskBA. My mistake irreparably destroys my credit as a know-it-all blogger, but the Yanks actual benefit: the comp pick for Gerrit Cole moves up two spots, while the comp pick for Scott Bittle moves up four spots.
My bad, yo.
An ode to the Boss from LA
When Hal Steinbrenner officially assumed control of the Yankees last week, an era of baseball history came to close. For 30 years, George, spending billions of dollars, has gone from a wild and crazy guy devoted to winning to a somewhat tempered owner still obsessively devoted to winning. Along the way, he’s made countless enemies, broken numerous baseball rules and forever altered the economic face of the game.
Earlier this year, I looked at the Boss’ Bronx legacy, and then Reggie called for George to land in the Hall. Over the next few years, we’ll hear a lot of those arguments — impact vs. personality — rehashed, but for now, writers are struggling with his quiet departure.
In a piece from the West Coast, Steve Dilbeck pens a Dodgers-centric paean to King George. A lot of us are too young to remember it, but the Dodgers and Yankees were primary interleague rivals during Steinbrenner’s early years as manager. While that rivalry has faded, the Boss’ best hyperbole came out when the Yanks and Dodgers squared off in the playoffs. Dilbeck looks back, almost fondly, on that era and wonders how the Boss managed to fade away so quietly. It truly is the end of an era of baseball history.
The Free Agent Starter Debate: Sheets vs Burnett
They’re both free agents, they both have top notch power arms, they have an equal amount of playoff experience (zero innings), yet one has been much more sought after this winter than the other. Widely considered to be the best non-Sabathia pitcher available this offseason, AJ Burnett has been a hot commodity, drawing rumored interest from as many as eight or ten teams. Ben Sheets, on the other hand, has heard his name garner nary a whisper early in the Hot Stove League despite starting the All-Star Game just four months ago. Why is this?
In terms of pure stuff, you’re looking at two very similar pitchers. Both work heavily off their fastball-hammer curveball combo, mixing in a changeup ranging anywhere from average to unhittable depending on the day. Burnett throws harder (average fastball velocity over the last four years is 94.9 mph according to Fangraphs), but Sheets isn’t exactly a soft tosser, averaging 92.8 mph on his heater over that time. Both have used their outstanding stuff to post historic outings; Sheets struck out 18 Braves in 2004 while Burnett no-hit the Padres back in 2001. AJ Burnett has arguably the best arm in the big leagues, but make no mistake about it, Ben Sheets ranks right up there are well.
Unfortunately for them, these two share more than just immense talent – they’ve both earned the “injury prone” label. While frequent DL trips is an unquestionable negative, it’s necessary to take a deeper look to see what’s really going on. Here’s Sheets’ DL history: