Free Agent Leftovers

Originally Posted on 1/26/08

We're less than a month away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training sites in Florida and Arizona and yet we still have a huge surplus of Major League veterans waiting around by the phone for their next opportunity to come knocking and in some cases, it may not happen.

It seems most teams are content with where they currently stand, although we do still have multiple trade rumors. Mostly swirling out of Baltimore with the Orioles (pitcher Erik Bedard, 2b Brian Roberts and others) and the Twins in Minnesota (star pitcher Johan Santana). My guess is once these big names move to their new homes, we'll have a few more free agents signed and then there are other teams still looking for a few final pieces and additional Spring Training invitations that some will accept. Overall, most teams are happy to advance their minor league talent and see how they fare before committing extra dollars to veteran commodities that aren't huge difference makers to begin with.

So in lieu of Spring Training and the homeless names out there, here are a list of players that may interest your favorite squad: INF Sean Casey (1b), Tony Clark (1b), Pedro Feliz (3b), common pitch hitters, Mark Sweeney and Olmedo "Killer Tomato" Saenz, utility guys Todd Walker, Eric Hinske Ramon Martinez, John McDonald. OF Bobby Kielty, Reggie Sanders, Shawn Green, Shannon Stewart, Steve Finley, Corey Patterson, Trot Nixon, Kenny Lofton, Luis Gonzalez and of course potential Hall of Famers in Mike Piazza, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds. On the pitching front, we still have available, former Cy Young award winner, Bartolo Colon, starters Odalis Perez, Steve Tracshel, Jeff Weaver, Livan Hernandez, Eric Milton, Brian Lawrence, Kyle Loshe, Kip Wells, David Wells and oft-injured Kris Benson and Freddy Garcia. Need some relief pitching help, how about former closer Armando Benitez, or Roberto Hernandez, Antonio Alfonseca, Aaron Sele, Ray King, Jorge Julio, Rudy Seanez, Trevor Miller and Darren Oliver. And then you have the other big name, Roger Clemens, who still hasn't officially retired.

Plenty of names still listed as Free Agents... besides the names of Bonds, Piazza, Sosa and Clemens, does it really matter? What does matter is trades but those talks still are just that, talks.

If you're interested in seeing some team previews for the upcoming season then check back as I'll start to post some organizational outlooks for 2008.

Coachella Lineup Official

A few years back I had some friends from my college years hype up a music festival, Coachella. Now, I've always been a big music fan but must admit sports had always come first. Well, that was until Coachella.

Unfortunately I had to miss Coachella the first year I heard of it, due to work (baseball games) but I went in 2006 and plan to be there every year here on out. Primarily because the World Series is in October and Coachella is the last weekend of April (I can see a few Dodger games on TV).

For me, Coachella isn't just a great music festival, it's one of my favorite annual road trips. I happen to go on a lot of road trips during the course of the year, mostly up and down the CA coast and parts of Central CA but Coachella is unlike any other. For one thing, it involves a great group of friends that I don't see as often as others and for another, it's not a big drinking trip. It's more about good times and good music spread over three days with good friends.

With that in mind, those that haven't been, I recommend that everyone look into it (you can find out more information at www.coachella.com). It may not have all the big familiar names playing this year or even any of the big one's rumored but I'm sure I'll still leave with at least 5 to 10 new bands that I'll love.

Of the names rumored that don't appear on the official list, Beck, Modest Mouse, OutKast, Mars Volta, Feist, The Chemical Brothers, Common and of course Radiohead will be missed.

However, I will be looking forward to seeing Jack Johnson again... and the Raconteurs, Animal Collective, Architecture in Helsinki, Portishead, Death Cab, M.I.A., Rilo Kiley, Cold War Kids, Hot Chip, My Morning Jacket, Cool Kids, Murs, a personal fav in Brett Dennen and many more.

Peter Gammons, back from Vacation

Originally Posted on 1/21/08

Peter Gammons most recent blog entry... it's nice to have him back, enjoy!

Cyberspace exploration

posted: Monday, January 21, 2008 | Print Entry
filed under: MLB

Nevis, nestled in the Caribbean, is a near-perfect place to disappear a month before spring training. The population is the same as it was when Alexander Hamilton was born there in 1755, which is a good thing.

There are four times as many monkeys as people, and you don't have to read or hear the same things about Roger Clemens every day, at least until he's bound to the truth. Also good. There's no MSNBC, which means no "Morning Joe," which is not good.

It is against the law to curse in public. Very good. There was a guy complaining about not liking Tom Brady, which means misanthropy lives everywhere, but even if there are people who can complain about the best and the brightest, there wasn't a tabloid story on Britney or Lindsay to be found, or a Bob's Discount Furniture commercial. Praise the Lord.

Because of the climate, sheep have no wool, so you learn that you can tell a goat from a lamb because goats have their tails up, lambs have their tails down. Hence, it is the perfect place to read David Halberstam's epic "The Coldest Winter," since the Korean War is like a black hole few of us understood until the greatest journalist who ever lived completed his 30-year work. Ronald Brownstein's "The Second Civil War" is a must-read, as is Fay Vincent's wonderful "I Would Have Played For Nothing," child of Lawrence Ritter's "The Glory of Their Times."

Near the end of my stay, a gentleman walked by and said, "Do you have to work on vacation?" He was staring at The Hardball Times Annual 2008 as if it were a business textbook. No need to answer.

One of the aspects that Brownstein examines in his study is how hyperpartisanism has left government polarized and frozen. While Democrats love to complain about the hyper-right, the liberal blogs like The Daily Kos have effectively shouted down the conciliatory nature of the DLC, which has worked so hard to try to make government work. Internet politics have, in many ways, become more important than the grand traditions of the newsweeklies, face time on MSNBC and Fox News or endorsements from the big daily newspapers.

So Internet politics have simply mirrored the world we now know as Internet sports. Sure, some of us old-timers still love a stack of newspapers draped across the front of the StairMaster, or still enjoy sitting at Peet's with a huge cup of coffee and The New York Times, Post and Daily News. But the reality is that while I try not to miss any of those newspapers, they're normally read on the Internet before 7 a.m., and there are sites that I never miss: Buster Olney's blog on ESPN.com; David Pinto's Baseball Musings; Tim Dierkes' MLBTradeRumors.com; Baseball Prospectus (hey, Will Carroll's "Under The Knife" remains the one column that cannot be missed); The Hardball Times; Baseball America; and, because I am from New England and like to be caught up, the Boston Sports Media Watch. I do not want any psychologist to know how many times a day I go to ESPN.com, Baseball Musings or MLBTradeRumors.com to check updates. And, sure, I never miss Curt Schilling.

I make no bones about my strong feelings about the human element. Pure numbers cannot do justice to character and drive and energy. They cannot measure the impact Robin Yount had on teamates when he ran down the first-base line at the same breakneck speed (one scout had nearly 90 Yount games in a six- or seven-year period and claimed he never got Yount faster than 3.9 seconds, or slower than 4.0). Mariano Rivera, Josh Beckett and David Wright are what they are because of who they are.

Stat lines cannot quantify work habits, the ability to learn, emotional stability, etc., but they are important guidelines by which to remind us that, in the end, performance counts.

There are bloggers and sites that savage those in the media who do interact with players and try to spend time understanding their motivations. We don't have to agree. Joe Sheehan wrote a brilliant piece off a discussion we had about Jack Morris, and while I respect his opinion and am still in awe of his research, I still remember what it was like being around those Tigers, Twins and Blue Jays teams when Morris took the ball and the responsibilities, as opposed to the six-inning wonders who looked into their dugouts. I still believe that Morris was the best of his era, that closing two World Series stands for something and that Game 7 in 1991 defined how he transcended the human elements that so alter the sport. That doesn't make Sheehan wrong.

Bill James is trying to define clutch, what made George Brett so different, or sets David Ortiz, when healthy, apart in swagger and presence. You can present me with 4,765 pages of anti-Derek Jeter material; it won't work, I watch him too much.

But those are parts of a greater landscape of arguments. The fact is that we all know more about baseball because of the proliferation of creative thought. Run through Baseball Think Factory, The Baseball Analysts, Squawking Baseball, Sabernomics, Beyond the Box Score, Dan Agonistes, John Sickels' minorleagueball.com. For everything, Deadspin.

Unfortunately, time keeps most of us from getting to those sites specific to teams. It's amazing how many club officials read USS Mariner (Seattle), Fire Brand of the American League (Boston), Ducksnorts (San Diego), Athletics Nation (Oakland), Viva El Birdos (St. Louis), Lone Star Ball (Texas), River Ave. Blues (Yankees), MetsBlog.com, FishStripes (Florida), Dodger Thoughts, Bronx Banter (great writing), The LoHud Yankees Blog, Reds Reporter (Cincinnati), Bleed Cubbie Blue, Brew Crew Ball (Milwaukee) and more.

And you need an update on steroids? Try Baseball's Steroid Era (an informative blog).

There are probably hundreds of sites I have missed. If so, hopefully, they'll run by my laptop. But as we begin the 2008 season, our information, understanding and thought processes have been dramatically altered from the days when a Sunday newspaper notes column seemed significant. And, as fans, we are so much better off for all the work that is being done.

"The Coldest Winter" is not homework. Neither is "The Second Civil War."

Or The Hardball Times Annual. It's what we enjoy.

Thanks.

Dodger Stadium, A True Slice of Heaven

Originally Posted on 1/19/08

The other day a co-worker took a jab at me and he knew exactly where to strike. He told me that Dodger Stadium was one of the worst Major League Ballparks, which I immediately took exception too (rightfully so).

Now, he happens to be from San Diego and roots for one of our many rivals, the Padres but that's no excuse to represent such a stupid, idiotic and ridiculous statement.

Dodger Stadium is one of the last true great older ballparks in the game... and has been for many years (even though the organization is in its second city, Brooklyn to LA). Currently, Dodger Stadium at Chavez Ravine, is the 4th oldest ballpark in Major League Baseball, behind just Wrigley Field (in Chicago with the Cubs), Fenway Park in Boston and Yankee Stadium in NY. Of course all four of the teams listed are four of the most recognizable teams in all of sports which helps in this debate but all four have also maintained their historical parks which run deep in baseball history. Sadly, the Yankees are soon moving out of the confines of Yankee Stadium, the House that Ruth Built. This will propel the Dodgers home to 3rd oldest and only add to the nostalgia of the once empty property that the O'Malley family purchased many years ago.

When the Dodgers first moved to Los Angeles in 1958, 50 years ago, they had to call the LA Coliseum home until Dodger Stadium's construction was completed. In fact, it wasn't until 1962 that the team was able to move up into the Hills of Chavez Ravine. But ever since, the area overlooking downtown LA from one side and facing the great San Gabriel Mountains from the other has been home to Championship Dodger teams and great memories for Dodgers and Baseball fans alike. Dodger Stadium truly is one of Los Angeles most cherished city landmarks.

In doing some research, according to the Dodgers website, over 125 million fans have visited the 56,000 seat ballpark since it opened on April 10th 1962. The first game ever played was against the Cincinnati Reds but the first win didn't come until the next day when the Dodgers defeated the Reds 6-2.

In 1978, the Dodgers were the first team to top the 3 million mark in attendance when the team drew 3,347,845. Since then the Dodgers commonly draw over 3 million fans and in some cases over 3.5 million fans. Heck, they've probably already out sold most of the other teams in the league for 2008 and may well join the Yankees this season with over 4 million seats sold...

Some other facts that I found, since the grand opening in '62, the Dodgers have hosted a MLB All-Star game in 1980 and Olympic games in 1984. The Dodgers have also won four World Championships at Dodger Stadium (1963, 1965, 1981 and 1988). Their first of six titles came back in 1955 while still in Brooklyn and playing at Ebbets Field and second was won while still playing (renting) at the LA Coliseum in 1959.

In 1999, the Dodgers would start to embark on many stadium renovations which are still on-going today with the current work being done on the concourse area of the field level but with each improvement, the stadium has maintained its rich history and has always impressed locals and visitors with a great clean, maintained facility that garners respect and admiration of baseball players and fans.

So before you jump to conclusions, come and check out Dodger Stadium for yourself... as Vin Scully would say, "Dodger Stadium is a true slice of heaven."

I'll leave you with a quote by the legendary broadcaster of the Dodgers, Hall of Famer, Vin Scully

When the sun sets at Dodger Stadium, I am impressed first of all with the mountains because, at this time of year, they are fully defined. It makes me think of some of the great artists who did Western paintings — Frederic Remington, Charles Russell, Frank McCarthy, to name a few — because they must have been inspired by that.

And then the cloud formations. At sunset, they turn pink. And as it continues, the closer you are to sunset, the clouds are still kind of gold. Farther away in center field and right field, you’re away from the sunset and the clouds are turning purple. So you think of an artist’s palette with various colors, and it just takes your breath away.

Down on the field, a ballgame is just beginning. But the sunset becomes a major distraction because it’s so overwhelming it’s hard to take your eyes off it. And then the palm trees — there’s a group of palm trees on the hill behind left field — they are defined against the sky, and they are turning colors with the sunset. You can’t see that anywhere else in a ballpark.”

Vin Scully
Los Angeles Times, August 21, 2003

Coachella 2008 Lineup

Not sure if this is correct or not but I've been forwarded what looks like a possible Coachella 2008 lineup... the official one should be out soon but here is a potential list worth scanning.

Either way, can't wait for another great three days of music and fun!

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/4003/c2008tt0.jpg

http://www.coachella.com/
(for official TBA lineup)

A few Pet Peeves

Originally Posted on 1/17/08

Over the course of the last week a few things I observed while out in public bugged me... so I thought I'd share a few recent pet peeves.

First off, you know the guy at the bar that has all the nice clothes on, the slicked back hair or popped up collar with all the extra accessories too (e.g. watch, bracelets, bling, etc...). You know who I'm talking about, the guy that thinks he's infinitely better than everyone else in the room... you might even have one as a friend. Well, I've come to accept these types but when they go and add sunglasses to the mix too, that's where I have to draw the line. I mean, c'mon! Do you need to where sunglasses in the dimmed bar? Can you actually see anything? What statement are you trying to make? When I see this, I want to do one of two things; clown the guy immensely or just flat out rip the sunglasses off and destroy the evidence. So far, it's always been the first of the two. The friends that are around and I will point him out, "hey, you see that guy, what a jerk-off," I've noticed bartenders get a kick out of them too.

Second, autograph seekers. Autographs from celebrities and sports stars are always a cherished item, heck I have a great collection myself and hope to continue to add to it but at some point in your life you reach a certain age and you really shouldn't be running arm and arm with kids asking for autographs. I'll admit myself that I extended the time frame for acceptable autograph seeking by a few years (probably last seen around the age of 16 or so) but what's worse is when you got someone that's clearly in their late twenties or worse, late forties still hunting down those signatures. Of course, they usually say its for someone else, like their kids at home but serious, we know the truth. So stop pushing little kids out of the way and get on the web or visit a convention or something... you should be able to find what you're looking for there instead of elbowing your way past other smaller, younger counterparts like I recently witnessed at a Laker game. Figure it out people.

And finally, the flower seller. Not the flower shop or the market down the street that sells flowers but the guy or gal that walks up to you in the restaurant or at the event trying to get you to buy a flower right then and there and in front of your companion, date, friend, or whoever your sharing a meal with. I hate this! Are you kidding, do you have to interrupt us to put me on the spot to sell a flower? If I wanted flowers then I can come to you or visit one of the many floral shops in the area. Of course I never react this way but inside I'm thinking, I'm screwed... if I buy this flower that could mean a lot of different things or send a message I don't want to send. I could also be on the worst date of all time but if you don't buy it then you may come off as a a-hole (possibly even towards someone you like). Furthermore, if you decide to commit and make the purchase then you're stuck at whatever price you're told. I mean, it could be a $10 flower and you'll have to pay it cause you can't go back on it once you commit to buying. Not in front of your date. Really, as I see it, this is a no win situation that can bring an awkward moment to what can be an already awkward night.

If you have any others, feel free to share. Cheers.

Clemens: A Kid in the Cookie Jar

Originally Posted on 1/8/08

Awww, Roger... Mr. Clemens, are you serious? Really? Because to me, you're really looking like a kid that just got busted stealing cookies from the cookie jar and you got chocolate all over your face. I want to believe you, just like I want to believe everyone else that refutes the notion of using illegal substances in Major League Baseball. But I've moved on, I've accepted the fact that this era, this period of time (the last 15 years or so) will forever be known as the steroid era. I know not everyone used but big chunks did and some of the users were other Hall of Fame ballplayers just like you Roger.

Let's look at what we have so far. We have one of the most credible names from our political system in former Senator George Mitchell and numerous sources that have been proven to be credible by the athletes that have verified the sources statements and allegations. Heck, even one of your best friends and longtime teammates, Andy Pettitte came clean and admitted your former trainer, Brian McNamee was telling the truth. Roger, you should've too. But instead you're dragging this on and on and now you'll be this huge story along with Barry Bonds and it'll just take away from the game all season. Don't get me wrong, baseball is still a great sport and it will survive this period just like it always has but do we really have to carry on with all this nonsense?

I mean, why would McNamee lie, what good comes of McNamee lying to Mitchell or Congress? Believe me, I want to be wrong and believe McNamee really is lying but why would he? He's not gaining anything for it?

Roger, as for your recent tape of the phone conversation you had with McNamee, I wouldn't have shared that. Your lawyer gave some bad advice there. To me, it sounded like a desperate plea to prove McNamee isn't a credible person but I wasn't fooled. Plus, what's up with all the bleeps and long sections blocked out? You never told him to just come clean and tell the truth that you didn't use. McNamee to me, just seemed upset over the whole situation but had no choice to share what he did. Plus, during your news conference, I couldn't help but think you were on steroids right then and there. I know you're upset about the truth coming out but talk about roid rage?

Roger, here is what you should've done. Admit you used a few times, say you didn't use until 1998 or whatever date was mentioned. Share what McNamee would later tell Sports Illustrated that you only used a few times in July and August during the 1998, 2000 and 2001 seasons. You were overcome by pressure to maintain your level of success and made a mistake. Explain you never took anything in the off-season or Spring Training but instead when your body was tiring and breaking down during the dog days of summer. You were aging and wanted to compete and not let your teammates down. Admit you made a mistake but hadn't used in years and never will again. You're disappointed in yourself and the whole situation, you hope your fans stick by you and that young athletes can look and see you made a mistake for a few years and righted the ship and enjoyed a great career. Continue to help young pitchers aspire to your greatness (non-steroid seasons). You're a Hall of Famer whether you used or not, remember, it's all about the era you played in and Roger Clemens will still go down as one of the greatest pitchers of all time. But, please let it go.

Now, I really hope I'm wrong! I really do... especially if we're really going to go down this road and be dragged into this story each week by the media. Roger, if you're really going to do this then you better be telling the truth! But if when it's your turn to go before Congress and you lie or avoid the questioning because you have some other trial preventing you from answering the questions truthfully then I will no doubt lose more respect for you as a person than I already have. Please just do the right thing and help let the sport that gave you so much move on... you can still come out of this positive by preaching the use of steroids to be harmful.

Until then, enjoy your cookies Clemens.