July 14
While Bud Selig was having one of the worst weeks in the history of any public figure, baseball continues to make no sense.
The Expos and Marlins are within two games of one another and Montreal trades two of its best pitching prospects (Justin Wayne and Josh Karp) and some fungible contracts for Clifford Floyd, who'll be gone at the end of the season?
They'd better be right claiming that Graeme Lloyd got his no-trade to Florida in too late.
Marlins president David Samson stated last week that he intends to drain the tub and refill it with his own bathwater, which means the Marlins are going to move contracts and keep next year's payroll closer to this season's $40 million total than what would have been $65 million in 2003. Expos general manager Omar Minaya is going for it, trying to get in the wild-card scrum and counting on the Expos being sold and moved to someone who can afford to put a contending team on the field.
The Expos plan to use Brad Wilkerson in center field and an Andres Galarraga/Wilfredo Cordero duo at first base. Minaya knows that Floyd will need to occasionally rest when Montreal plays on turf, but says he has Troy O'Leary to fill in. Having added Bartolo Colon and Floyd for five top prospects is a run for 2002-03, and Minaya isn't going to worry if both are gone as free agent by 2004.
Indians manager Charlie Manuel goes in and demands either an extension or a firing?
GM Mark Shapiro hadn't decided Manuel's fate past this season, but he wasn't prepared to fill Manuel's request "to prove that I'm your man." Instead of letting Charlie quit, Shapiro took the heat and paid Manuel for the rest of the season.
Charlie Manuel is a good man, but he seemed uncomfortable with some of Cleveland's coaching changes and had a hard time dealing with ownership's requirement to pare payroll from the mid-$90s to the mid-$50s. "Have you ever had to trade your best player because of payroll?" Shapiro asked Pat Gillick. The answer: no. Few general managers have ever had to go through what Shapiro, J.P. Ricciardi in Toronto and so many are required to do in this uncertain era.
The Indians have had a lot of bad luck. Outfielder Matt Lawton has had a bad shoulder all season. Outfielder Alex Escobar tore up his knee in spring training. Third baseman Travis Fryman's production dried up overnight.
But having traded Robby Alomar and Colon, Shapiro is now faced with the Jim Thome trade-or-sign dilemna. "I haven't talked to him about waving his no-trade," Shapiro said Saturday. Shapiro was perturbed by reports that the Red Sox were on the verge of a deal for Thome and Chuck Finley, which would have been a salary dump since Boston has no minor leaguers that interest the Indians and Trot Nixon doesn't fit Cleveland's 2004 profile. "What bothers me about that report is that I haven't even talked to (Red Sox GM) Mike Port about Thome," says Shapiro. So much for that.
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| 2002 SEASON STATISTICS |
| GM |
W-L |
IP |
H |
K |
ERA |
| 18 |
5-9 |
124 |
132 |
91 |
5.08 |
|
|
For two months, Jim Bowden continually sung the siren song of Juan Encarnacion. The Marlins finally listened to that tune and the Reds ended up with Ryan Dempster.
Is Dempster a No. 1 starter? No, but he is a 200-innings horse who has pitched fewer than six innings once all season. Acquiring him wasn't easy, because Bowden couldn't add payroll and Dempster makes $2.475 million, which meant that he had to move Encarnacion ($1.55M) and Wilton Guerrero ($880,000), as well as a good left-handed relief prospect in Ryan Snare. "Finding a young starter like Dempster wasn't easy," says Bowden. "But we're very excited. Don Gullett loves him."
With Junior Griffey on the way back, the Reds can forget about their rotation and get back to playing Austin Kearns, Griffey, Adam Dunn and Sean Casey every day, as they were not comfortable with the rotation system.
Around the majors
There was apparently nothing to the Roberto Alomar-to-L.A. rumor but an internal discussion among the Dodgers that went nowhere. The Mets will move some players -- Shawn Estes, Steve Trachsel, Jeff D'Amico, Rey Ordonez -- but until Steve Phillips is ordered to slash payroll, he isn't going to break up what could be the core of a good team next season. The Edgardo Alfonzo dilemma is that in the spring he turned down a better contract ($18.6 million for 3 years) than he'll get at the end of the season. As for Ordonez, if anyone would take him, don't be surprised if the Mets would think about playing 19-year-old phenom Jose Reyes.
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| 2002 SEASON STATISTICS |
| GM |
W-L |
IP |
H |
K |
ERA |
| 18 |
10-4 |
134.2 |
121 |
104 |
2.87 |
|
|
Roy Halladay, who is approaching the level of the elite starters in the American League, this week said that for the first time in his Toronto career the organization has a plan and a direction. There is still a lot of salary to dump and a lot of arms to acquire, because other than Halladay there is little pitching in the majors or minors. ... The Giants had been rumored to be in the Scott Rolen hunt along with Cincinnati (offering Brandon Larson plus others), but more likely could move pitcher Jerome Williams to the Blue Jays for Junior Cruz.
The Dodgers are looking for a utilityman between Frank Catalanotto, Tyler Houston and Greg Norton, with a deal involving Triple-A 2B-SS Joe Thurston for Catalanotto. ... L.A. is also looking for a power setup man and is one of the clubs hard after Toronto's Kelvim Escobar.
The Indians called around to all the clubs interested in Finley to tell them they were down to four suitors, and contrary to the Boston media reports, the Red Sox are not one of them. St. Louis and Cincinnati are two of the four. ... The Cardinals need two starters, with Finley, Orlando Hernandez, Jeff Suppan, Mike Hampton, Ismael Valdes among those they are looking at.
Colorado, which still hopes to make the Denny Neagle-Jason Kendall swap that would save the Pirates more than $20 million over the term of the contracts, might get interest in moving Hampton. St. Louis has had interest if it can work out a balance of cash and get Hampton to defer money, and Texas has interest if the Rockies will take expensive players like Rusty Greer, Jay Powell and Jeff Zimmerman. There is interest in Todd Hollandsworth, and Colorado wants to get Jack Cust up and in left field to see how he hits and whether or not he can play left well enough. Powell and Zimmerman would replace Todd Jones if he is traded. Jones has been one of the best setup men in the National League, and with a $3 million option for next season has become attractive to several teams.
After watching Carl Everett wallow around and allow 10 triples in 20 starts in center field, the Rangers now have him platooning against lefties at DH. That $9.2 million contract next year doesn't look too good. ... Scouts in the Cape Cod League have wondered about the college kid tagging along with White Sox scouts. He's David Reinsdorf, a Cornell student and son of the owner, who is out learning scouting. Instead of sitting upstairs in an air-conditioned office, he is out learning the essence of the game.
News and notes
Manny Ramirez believes he probably came back from his finger injury too quickly. At the All-Star Game, he said, "The reason I keep changing my stance and keep trying to make adjustments is that I still can't grip the bat with my finger. But I know they need me, and I'm doing the best I can." ... One scout on Philadelphia's impressive OF Marlon Byrd: "He's got a lot of Bo Jackson in him. Power, speed, athleticism, aggressiveness. Byrd has the whole package."
Should media folks who throw accusations about specific players and steroids be accountable to some form of testing of their own? Many talk-show hosts do not believe in accountability or see any harm in any and all defamation, but when Bret Boone's name is thrown out nationally (OK, he doesn't know Boone, his diet or his fanatical workout routine) or a play-by-play host says Eric Gagne had to be a steroids guy because "he was throwing 84 miles an hour two years ago" (OK, the guy didn't know what he was talking about, because Gagne was throwing 92-94 in 2000, but that's "telling it like it is"), there should be some standard for accountability in the media. It's amazing how the media wants athletes, but not journalists, held to standards.
Congratulations to the New Era Cap Co. for revealing that the two largest hats they have made are size 8's for Bruce Bochy and Kevin Mench. ... It's a small world: A's GM Billy Beane once beat out Indians manager Joel Skinner by one hit for their San Diego Little League batting title in 1973, but their All-Star team was shut out by now-Triple A-Sacramento manager Bob Geren.
The rank of those who would take A.J. Burnett over any Florida starter, even Josh Beckett, is growing. "Most great power pitchers strike out hitters out of the strike zone," says one GM. "But Burnett gets more swings and misses on pitches in the strike zone than anyone in the game." Says All-Star Mike Lowell: "He's growing into a legitimate No. 1 starter and ace. He's getting better and better all the time."
There continue to be rumblings that Drew Henson is available and that the Yankees have become frustrated by his progress. "This is the first time in my life that I've had as many as 350 at-bats," says Henson, who is hitting .254 with 11 HRs but only 19 walks in 311 at-bats. "Pitch recognition has been a tough thing to learn, but I'm getting there. I have to grind and work my way through this." Henson had some throwing problems, which his former manager and favorite coach Brian Butterfield says "came from thinking too much. It's not 'the thing,' Drew just trying too hard. He's a great kid and worker and will be fine." ... "The Thing" is a nightmare, one that former Expos phenom Donnie Bridges is trying to overcome in the Florida organization.
Giants minor-league people maintain that GM Brian Sabean told them he intends to be back next year. He and Dusty Baker are both free agents at the end of the season. Say Sabean stays -- what that means for Baker isn't known. ... The White Sox have already begun shopping Kenny Lofton, Carlos Lee, Ray Durham (who is a free agent), Royce Clayton, Todd Ritchie and some of their relievers as they try to decide which kids to put in the lineup. Jerry Manuel's future is another issue.
Beane compares Mark Mulder to Jim Palmer and/or Mike Mussina because of his athleticism and weapons. Oh, yes: Mulder was hurt for six weeks and still is 10-5. "Mark has so many weapons," says Beane. "He throws in the mid-90s. He has the great overhand curveball. He can throw his split down and away and down and in. He's such a great athlete, he looks like he does it easily." ... Pity Dan Plesac. He's still a very effective left-handed reliever and the Phillies have offered him $2.5 million for 2003. But is it worth it to take the money in such a miserable atmosphere? ... The AL West was the first division since the 1979 AL East to have had three teams with 50 wins at the All-Star break.
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