Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Beware the Curse of the Titties
I still can't believe that poor Brant Colamarino's career may be over, only a few months after this blog was created. I am seriously considering renaming this place after Stewart now.
That Hurts, Part 4
A day early today.
“I don’t know if we have the luxury of waiting two to three months for someone to kick in because we can’t let this league or this division get away from us." -J.P. Riccardi
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 39
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 19-17
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 7 in 36 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .319/.417/.516 (OPS+ 164)
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .264/.331/.321
Stew was on a very impressive 11-game hitting streak until last night during which he hit .359, but with no power. Mench and Wilkerson are hitting a combined .183. The offense is beginning to pick things up but in their last 12 losses the Jays have scored 18 runs - 1.5 per game. 8 of those 12 losses have been by 1 or 2 runs, or in extras.
“I don’t know if we have the luxury of waiting two to three months for someone to kick in because we can’t let this league or this division get away from us." -J.P. Riccardi
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 39
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 19-17
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 7 in 36 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .319/.417/.516 (OPS+ 164)
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .264/.331/.321
Stew was on a very impressive 11-game hitting streak until last night during which he hit .359, but with no power. Mench and Wilkerson are hitting a combined .183. The offense is beginning to pick things up but in their last 12 losses the Jays have scored 18 runs - 1.5 per game. 8 of those 12 losses have been by 1 or 2 runs, or in extras.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Inappropriate Names on the All-Star Ballot
(Otherwise known as "who I voted for")
1B Richie Sexson, SEA
2B Asdrubal Cabrera, CLE
SS Luis Hernandez, BAL
3B Melvin Mora, BAL
OF Jacque Jones, DET; Brad Wilkerson, SEA; Adam Jones, BAL
C Kenji Johjima (only if Washburn gets the start), SEA
DH Frank Thomas, TOR
1B Dan Ortmeier, SF
2B Kazuo Matsui, HOU
SS Cristian Guzman, WAS
3B Pedro Feliz, PHI
C Ronny Paulino, PIT
OF Andruw Jones, LA; Jim Edmonds, SD; Michael Bourn, HOU
1B Richie Sexson, SEA
2B Asdrubal Cabrera, CLE
SS Luis Hernandez, BAL
3B Melvin Mora, BAL
OF Jacque Jones, DET; Brad Wilkerson, SEA; Adam Jones, BAL
C Kenji Johjima (only if Washburn gets the start), SEA
DH Frank Thomas, TOR
1B Dan Ortmeier, SF
2B Kazuo Matsui, HOU
SS Cristian Guzman, WAS
3B Pedro Feliz, PHI
C Ronny Paulino, PIT
OF Andruw Jones, LA; Jim Edmonds, SD; Michael Bourn, HOU
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
But I know there'll be some way
When I can swing everything back my way
Like skyscrapers rising up
Floor by floor--I'm not giving up!
Colamarino out for the year. Didn't appear in a game.
Like skyscrapers rising up
Floor by floor--I'm not giving up!
Colamarino out for the year. Didn't appear in a game.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Colamarino Has Trivia
Today's first question comes from Steve Paikin's Remembering David Steinhart post:
Yankees’ pitcher Ron Guidry went 25-3 in 1978 in one of the all-time great seasons for a pitcher. Name the three pitchers who defeated him.
The late Steinhart could not come up with it, but I'll give you two hints: these three men have the same first name and one of them was a Blue Jay.
Honour system in effect as always.
Yankees’ pitcher Ron Guidry went 25-3 in 1978 in one of the all-time great seasons for a pitcher. Name the three pitchers who defeated him.
The late Steinhart could not come up with it, but I'll give you two hints: these three men have the same first name and one of them was a Blue Jay.
Honour system in effect as always.
Monday, May 19, 2008
That Hurts - Part 3
“I don’t know if we have the luxury of waiting two to three months for someone to kick in because we can’t let this league or this division get away from us." -J.P. Riccardi
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 30
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 15-14
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 4 in 29 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .269/.390/.343
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .253/.321/.333
Stew's picked it up a bit lately, but not by much. Both players basically sat all weekend during that despicable sideshow of interleague play. Mench and Wilkerson haven't done much yet.
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 30
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 15-14
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 4 in 29 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .269/.390/.343
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .253/.321/.333
Stew's picked it up a bit lately, but not by much. Both players basically sat all weekend during that despicable sideshow of interleague play. Mench and Wilkerson haven't done much yet.
Urge to kill updated
Tybalt complained about the MLB schedule last summer. Specifically, the August 2007 long weekend was "the first time since 2002 that the Jays have played three home games on a summer long weekend." I don't think the many people who complain about the MLB schedule realize how incredibly difficult it is--go ahead, try scheduling something like the Intercounty Baseball League and see how far you get--but that won't stop me from taking a look at the 2008 long weekends.
Since, you know, today is the first one.
Everything except the 2008 line below is from his original post. This year, the Jays were out of town entirely for the May weekend, at home on Sat/Sun but not Mon/Tue of the Canada Day weekend, at home only on the August holiday Monday and not the weekend, and not even playing on Labour Day. What's with playing Canada Day out in Seattle?
Since, you know, today is the first one.
Everything except the 2008 line below is from his original post. This year, the Jays were out of town entirely for the May weekend, at home on Sat/Sun but not Mon/Tue of the Canada Day weekend, at home only on the August holiday Monday and not the weekend, and not even playing on Labour Day. What's with playing Canada Day out in Seattle?
Year 5/24 7/01 8/01 9/01
2008 road half half road
2007 road road home half
2006 half half road half
2005 half* road half* half
2004 half road half half*
2003 half half road half
2002 half half home home
(* : played at home on the weekend and had an off-day on the holiday.)
("half" means some games on the weekend but not all three days.)
Monday, May 12, 2008
The GM Family
Following on from Magpie's brilliant research at Da Box... I hereby present version 0.01 (alpha) of the General Managers' Family Tree. Click to enlarge...
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Brad Wilkerson : Then and Now
THEN: Rios for Wilkerson would be an excellent deal. Wilkerson would give the Jays a nice bat in RF, while Rios might just be "toolsy" enough to interest Bowden.
THEN: Last year it was Wilkerson for Wells, pretty sure it hasn't gone down by *that* much.
THEN: Batista for Wilkerson is quite palatable, but why not add Rios, Hinske and a couple of exciting young arms to the offer and get Nick the Stick too?
THEN: If I'm Washington, I don't like Reed Johnson plus Batista for Wilkerson - I think I would hold out for Alex Rios (which I think is still doable)
THEN (my favourite): I'd do Batista for Wilkerson in half-a-second. Would JP? How about about Chacin and Rios for Wilkerson? I'd do that one even quicker. But what do I know? Nothing, that's what -- except that JP ain't done and I ain't gonna bitch and moan about who he trades and whoever the hitters are that he comes up with until I see how the '06 season plays out.
NOW: Wilkerson was signed off the scrap heap.
NOW: Wilkerson has not done much for over 2 years against all types of pitchers. I would much rather have a Lind/Stewart platoon.
NOW: As for Wilkerson, I'm not so fond of that acquisition.
Bonus Miguel Negron sighting! Furthermore, and I have only circumstantial evidence to back this up, but I would bet that Wells will be in a different uniform in 2008. If that's the case, who's going to play CF if Rios is traded? Negron?
THEN: Last year it was Wilkerson for Wells, pretty sure it hasn't gone down by *that* much.
THEN: Batista for Wilkerson is quite palatable, but why not add Rios, Hinske and a couple of exciting young arms to the offer and get Nick the Stick too?
THEN: If I'm Washington, I don't like Reed Johnson plus Batista for Wilkerson - I think I would hold out for Alex Rios (which I think is still doable)
THEN (my favourite): I'd do Batista for Wilkerson in half-a-second. Would JP? How about about Chacin and Rios for Wilkerson? I'd do that one even quicker. But what do I know? Nothing, that's what -- except that JP ain't done and I ain't gonna bitch and moan about who he trades and whoever the hitters are that he comes up with until I see how the '06 season plays out.
NOW: Wilkerson was signed off the scrap heap.
NOW: Wilkerson has not done much for over 2 years against all types of pitchers. I would much rather have a Lind/Stewart platoon.
NOW: As for Wilkerson, I'm not so fond of that acquisition.
Bonus Miguel Negron sighting! Furthermore, and I have only circumstantial evidence to back this up, but I would bet that Wells will be in a different uniform in 2008. If that's the case, who's going to play CF if Rios is traded? Negron?
Friday, May 9, 2008
That Hurts - Part 2
“I don’t know if we have the luxury of waiting two to three months for someone to kick in because we can’t let this league or this division get away from us." -J.P. Riccardi
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 20
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 8-10
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 1 in 18 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .267/.400/.356
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .224/.283/.286
The decision looks worse than ever with the looming arrival of Brad Wilkerson and the lovely 0-for-6 Stew put up in the 2 hole last night.
Days since Frank Thomas was released : 20
Blue Jays' record since Frank Thomas last appeared in their lineup : 8-10
Number of times Blue Jays have scored more than 5 runs : 1 in 18 games
Frank Thomas's batting line since his release : .267/.400/.356
Shannon Stewart's batting line since Thomas's release : .224/.283/.286
The decision looks worse than ever with the looming arrival of Brad Wilkerson and the lovely 0-for-6 Stew put up in the 2 hole last night.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
The Prince
Much discussion over at Da Box about JP Ricciardi, following on from Robert Dudek's insightful and timely piece on Ricciardi's legacy. In the comments, Robert and the always perceptive Mike Green pointed to intelligence and creativity as the key aspects of a good GM. I think that's missing something, as I replied:
There's a third leg to that GM tripod that gets far, far too little exposure but one which is equally as important as intelligence and creativity. Management.
A general manager has to be (unsurprisingly) a good manager, has to have or develop that specific, rather tight bundle of skills that enables someone to lead, organize, plan and control. Qualities like leadership. Bravery. Trust. Organization. Integrity. Wisdom. The bundle of skills that shows up not in the "what" of an organization but in its "how"; not in the individual decision-trees that we seize on as critical markers in the narrative of a general manager's tenure, but in the forest of continual process, growth and change that the 300 or so members of a major league organization are in the midst of on a daily basis.
If there is one constant in the list of names you mentioned, Mike, it is that they have or had superb leadership skills, to the point that they have built tremendous loyalty within their organizations (as well as without). There are a number of reasons why one organization supposedly loaded with young talent produces four Hall of Fame talents in eight years and another, equally loaded, nearly contemporary to it, produces nothing but heartache and misery. But the central reason is because one is led by John Schuerholz and the second is led by Frank Cashen, both of whom won exactly one world championship but whose organizations could not have been more different. And yes, it pains me viscerally to say nice things about the Braves. :)
Look at Branch Rickey, who had smarts and vision but whose smarts and vision would have come to nothing if he had not inspired (grudging) loyalty, or behaved himself with courage and integrity. All the vision in the world amounts to nothing without the courage to plow a different furrow.
To my view, this is where Ricciardi has fallen down most frustratingly, where he has not built upon his native strengths or worked to remedy his native deficiencies. Ricciardi's management approach has, if anything, grown more timid and afraid of failure since he has come into the job. He has pulled the organization into a defensive, reactionary shell, with the occasional body hurled over the parapet when someone fails to jump on board with his "us vs. them" philosophy. And he has failed to demonstrate the wisdom of acknowledging and learning from his mistakes.
He does do some of these things well. I think he's a good leader (though we're increasingly seeing cracks even in that, keeping in mind his recent comments on Gregg Zaun). I think he is decisive and aggressive and makes his decisions quickly. And he has inspired trust and loyalty from many, not least of which are the twin engines of the team, Roy Halladay and Brad Arnsberg. His willingness to stand up before than fans and be shot at, shows an example of his integrity. But those were his hallmarks when coming in, and he has not notably made improvements in his management skills generally. I thought, five-plus years on, that he'd be a smarter general manager now, and he has definitely accomplished that in my view. But I also thought he'd be a better manager, and I don't think he is.
There's a third leg to that GM tripod that gets far, far too little exposure but one which is equally as important as intelligence and creativity. Management.
A general manager has to be (unsurprisingly) a good manager, has to have or develop that specific, rather tight bundle of skills that enables someone to lead, organize, plan and control. Qualities like leadership. Bravery. Trust. Organization. Integrity. Wisdom. The bundle of skills that shows up not in the "what" of an organization but in its "how"; not in the individual decision-trees that we seize on as critical markers in the narrative of a general manager's tenure, but in the forest of continual process, growth and change that the 300 or so members of a major league organization are in the midst of on a daily basis.
If there is one constant in the list of names you mentioned, Mike, it is that they have or had superb leadership skills, to the point that they have built tremendous loyalty within their organizations (as well as without). There are a number of reasons why one organization supposedly loaded with young talent produces four Hall of Fame talents in eight years and another, equally loaded, nearly contemporary to it, produces nothing but heartache and misery. But the central reason is because one is led by John Schuerholz and the second is led by Frank Cashen, both of whom won exactly one world championship but whose organizations could not have been more different. And yes, it pains me viscerally to say nice things about the Braves. :)
Look at Branch Rickey, who had smarts and vision but whose smarts and vision would have come to nothing if he had not inspired (grudging) loyalty, or behaved himself with courage and integrity. All the vision in the world amounts to nothing without the courage to plow a different furrow.
To my view, this is where Ricciardi has fallen down most frustratingly, where he has not built upon his native strengths or worked to remedy his native deficiencies. Ricciardi's management approach has, if anything, grown more timid and afraid of failure since he has come into the job. He has pulled the organization into a defensive, reactionary shell, with the occasional body hurled over the parapet when someone fails to jump on board with his "us vs. them" philosophy. And he has failed to demonstrate the wisdom of acknowledging and learning from his mistakes.
He does do some of these things well. I think he's a good leader (though we're increasingly seeing cracks even in that, keeping in mind his recent comments on Gregg Zaun). I think he is decisive and aggressive and makes his decisions quickly. And he has inspired trust and loyalty from many, not least of which are the twin engines of the team, Roy Halladay and Brad Arnsberg. His willingness to stand up before than fans and be shot at, shows an example of his integrity. But those were his hallmarks when coming in, and he has not notably made improvements in his management skills generally. I thought, five-plus years on, that he'd be a smarter general manager now, and he has definitely accomplished that in my view. But I also thought he'd be a better manager, and I don't think he is.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Ne blessez pas...er, quatre...match...
Haven't been able to watch or listen to any games in a few days now. But, since I officially woke up in my new apartment for the first time on the morning of May 1, the Blue Jays haven't lost a game. I know you're not supposed to mess with a winning streak, but I have to leave Montreal at the end of August...
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Men(a)s(h)a
Today's Olneyblog contains this gem of wisdom from an old friend, via Andy Sonnanstine:
"I was telling [Hinske] of how much better I felt if I threw a first-pitch strike and he was letting me know how amped he's getting when there's a 2-0 count, or 3-1. He gets excited because he knows that statistically, the chances are he's going to get a base knock."
I don't doubt he knows (like everyone) that he hits better at 2-0 or 3-1, but Hinske knowing something statistically? Also, Andy, if you have to go to Eric Hinske to learn "strikes > balls" then this pitching thing might not be for you.
"I was telling [Hinske] of how much better I felt if I threw a first-pitch strike and he was letting me know how amped he's getting when there's a 2-0 count, or 3-1. He gets excited because he knows that statistically, the chances are he's going to get a base knock."
I don't doubt he knows (like everyone) that he hits better at 2-0 or 3-1, but Hinske knowing something statistically? Also, Andy, if you have to go to Eric Hinske to learn "strikes > balls" then this pitching thing might not be for you.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Hooray, hooray, and all that
In the Devil Rays Era, here are the Blue Jays' records in April, total wins in the season, and expected wins if April were the entire year.
Year April W AprW Diff
2001 0.640 80 104 -24
1999 0.542 84 88 -4
2006 0.522 87 85 2
2005 0.520 80 84 -4
2007 0.520 83 84 -1
2000 0.462 83 75 8
2008 0.393 ??? 64 ???
1998 0.385 88 62 26
2003 0.357 86 58 28
2002 0.333 78 54 24
2004 0.318 67 52 16
Optimistic view: The team's been worse in April and has still finished with 85+ wins. The 1989 team (not shown) was worse than the 2008 team in April and played in October. This does not mean they should hire Cito. Go away, all of you.
Pessimistic view: The Jays haven't had more than 88 wins in ten years.
Another view: The best April in team history is 1992 (16-7, .696) with Cito (This does not mean they should...), then it's 1985 (13-7, .650) with Bobby Cox. So, two great Aprils, two great managers. Then in third place in 2001 is...Buck Martinez?
Year April W AprW Diff
2001 0.640 80 104 -24
1999 0.542 84 88 -4
2006 0.522 87 85 2
2005 0.520 80 84 -4
2007 0.520 83 84 -1
2000 0.462 83 75 8
2008 0.393 ??? 64 ???
1998 0.385 88 62 26
2003 0.357 86 58 28
2002 0.333 78 54 24
2004 0.318 67 52 16
Optimistic view: The team's been worse in April and has still finished with 85+ wins. The 1989 team (not shown) was worse than the 2008 team in April and played in October. This does not mean they should hire Cito. Go away, all of you.
Pessimistic view: The Jays haven't had more than 88 wins in ten years.
Another view: The best April in team history is 1992 (16-7, .696) with Cito (This does not mean they should...), then it's 1985 (13-7, .650) with Bobby Cox. So, two great Aprils, two great managers. Then in third place in 2001 is...Buck Martinez?
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