One longtime, faithful reader of this site accused this writer of being biased against Lou Piniella which colored the thinking that went into the writing here. The truth couldn't be further from the comment. Piniella has been loved in this corner. As a product of New Jersey, Lou Piniella was a hero. Not the graceful Don Mattingly kind of hero. But the Joe Everyman kind. He looked more like a beer league softball player than he did a ball player and yet his passion and his effort made him an effective player on teams this Fan rooted for. He then managed the home town team and his antics as a manager were similar to his playing days and we ate it up. He was cheered when he won in Cincinnati and he was rooted against when he went to Seattle. He was pitied in Tampa and then rooted for in Chicago. And he came really close in Chicago. So there is no joy here in his retirement. There is no joy that his managerial career went out with a terrible team playing terrible baseball. There is relief.
The experience was similar to the recent Ken Griffey situation in Seattle. It was obvious that the game had passed Griffey by. We all wanted to see one last hurrah. But there were no hurrahs left in his body. It was a relief when he was finished at last. The very same thing is felt in Piniella's situation. He was simply a tired old manager in charge of a tired old team and saddled with a tired old front office. It was obvious in the Cubs listlessness. They slept walked through half the season. They looked beaten down and demoralized. Sometimes emotional problems in the clubhouse energize a team. In the Cubs case, it sapped the life out of the Cubs as surely as morphine saps the life out of a poor and tired cancer patient. There is no blaming Piniella from this side of the keyboard. There was just the knowledge that the satiation was beyond him and there was nothing he could do to turn it around. He no longer had the emotional fire. You can't blame a guy for that. You just wish it wasn't so.
The real blame here goes to his general manager. Piniella should have had a deal worked out at the end of last year's season for him to bow out gracefully. Hendry should have insisted on it. If it all blew up, the results would have been the same. Fresh blood would have been in the dugout and Piniella would have had hard feelings. A person in leadership situations like Hendry has to know. A leader has a finger on the pulse. But the Fan has to admit that as a former leader himself, sometimes situations get away from you and you are too slow to act. Hendry was way too slow in this case. And call the Fan a cynic if you want to, but Hendry did finally act. Piniella and Hendry surely had conversations and Hendry told Piniella that the team was going in a different direction next year. That's how the whole retirement thing started in the first place. Today's decision was just as surely based on Piniella's concern for his mother, but if Piniella was still in the plans for the future, Hendry would have worked out something with Piniella so he could go take care of his mom. Right?
This also had to be a case of Piniella knowing he was done. When the fire is gone, the proud always know. Because it's the pride that fuels the fire in the first place. Piniella knew as simply as this Fan knew and just as certain as most Cubs' fans in the stands each night knew. It was time. Piniella was no longer the right man for that job and at least he got to go out with his dignity intact.
But don't believe the retirement statements. Piniella just needs some time away. Or he needs a different situation. In many ways, Piniella is a younger Don Zimmer. He's a lifer and he'll find a job somewhere in the game he loves. He may never manage again, or he may. But he'll be around. Joe Everymen don't ride off into the sunset. They just sit in their recliner a while until that becomes unbearable too.
The Fan has been hard on the Cubs this season. But rightly so. The players mailed it in. Piniella was tired and couldn't rise to the occasion and the front office put together one of the worst mishmashes of a team in the history of the South Side. A bloated payroll of non-winners kept on beyond their primes and bad move after bad move heaped on top of each other. Finally having the right end to the Piniella story is a step in the right direction. The Fan will leave it in the Cubs ownership's hands on what should be done with Hendry. The Fan has his opinion but without access, it's all nearsighted and can hardly be adequately judged. It sure hasn't looked good. Let's just put it that way.
As for Lou, this Fan is highly relieved. The Fan thought he was finished in Tampa Bay, but he mustered enough mojo for a couple of years in Chicago and came real close to pulling off a miracle. But the mojo was gone and it was like watching Mohamed Ali boxing in his last days. It was sad and distressing. But thank goodness, it's over. Take care, Mr. Piniella. Take care of your family and try to enjoy yourself for a while. And thanks for the memories.
Showing posts with label Lou Piniella. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lou Piniella. Show all posts
Monday, August 23, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Lou Piniella Will Step Down
After calling for his head in this space for much of the year, Lou Piniella handed his own head on a platter and announced this is his last year managing. Unfortunately for the Cubs, it's one year too late. That sounds harsh and you'll have to forgive this writer for appearing so. Lou Piniella has been a personal hero for many, many years. He was a part of those great Yankee teams of the late 70s. Back then, he was the poor man's version of Kevin Youkilis. He didn't have the Boston first baseman's power, but every at bat and every game was a war and he wore it all over his uniform.
Piniella brought that same style to managing but judging from some of the comments from the players who played for him like Alex Rodriguez, Rob Dibble and Derrek Lee, he was also a manager who took time to get to know and care about his players. And certainly, Piniella had his share of managing success. He won a World Series with the Reds. He set a record for season wins in Seattle. His early Cubs years were successful. But time has passed him by.
But perhaps even that is unfair. It can also be said that Piniella was done in by personnel moves dictated by Jim Hendry, who apparently, and unbelievably, will be back next year. Hendry brought in one-dimensional players like Aldolfo Soriano and troubled ones like Milton Bradley. The Cubs of the past two season were an odd fit and the team never seemed to have any chance to gel. So from that standpoint, it's hard to point fingers at Piniella.
But there are little things. Who can tell if he could have handled the Bradley situation better. Give all the blame you want to Bradley, but Piniella never made it work. The same can be said about Zambrano. Sure, these players need to be held responsible for their actions, but the whispers you hear about was an atmosphere of enabling where factions formed that contributed in part to what happened with Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano.
Piniella's facial expressions during Zambrano's tirade are stuck in the Fan's mind. It was a face of bewilderment. And that seems to be the right word for Lou Piniella the last couple of years. To this Fan at least, it seems rare when an older manager can still reach the young players he manages. There are a few exceptions, but with today's players in this modern world, it seems more of a younger man's world. Joe Girardi and Maddon come to mind. Piniella just seemed too far removed from things.
We live in a cynical day and age. It's easy to speculate that Piniella was already told that he wouldn't be retained after the season, or perhaps he saw the writing on the wall. This is the gracious way out. Lou Piniella has seen it all in his nearly 50 years in baseball. He has three championship rings, two as a player and one as a manager. He's had a proud and good baseball career. This Fan hopes he enjoys the rest of his life with fond reflection.
Piniella brought that same style to managing but judging from some of the comments from the players who played for him like Alex Rodriguez, Rob Dibble and Derrek Lee, he was also a manager who took time to get to know and care about his players. And certainly, Piniella had his share of managing success. He won a World Series with the Reds. He set a record for season wins in Seattle. His early Cubs years were successful. But time has passed him by.
But perhaps even that is unfair. It can also be said that Piniella was done in by personnel moves dictated by Jim Hendry, who apparently, and unbelievably, will be back next year. Hendry brought in one-dimensional players like Aldolfo Soriano and troubled ones like Milton Bradley. The Cubs of the past two season were an odd fit and the team never seemed to have any chance to gel. So from that standpoint, it's hard to point fingers at Piniella.
But there are little things. Who can tell if he could have handled the Bradley situation better. Give all the blame you want to Bradley, but Piniella never made it work. The same can be said about Zambrano. Sure, these players need to be held responsible for their actions, but the whispers you hear about was an atmosphere of enabling where factions formed that contributed in part to what happened with Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano.
Piniella's facial expressions during Zambrano's tirade are stuck in the Fan's mind. It was a face of bewilderment. And that seems to be the right word for Lou Piniella the last couple of years. To this Fan at least, it seems rare when an older manager can still reach the young players he manages. There are a few exceptions, but with today's players in this modern world, it seems more of a younger man's world. Joe Girardi and Maddon come to mind. Piniella just seemed too far removed from things.
We live in a cynical day and age. It's easy to speculate that Piniella was already told that he wouldn't be retained after the season, or perhaps he saw the writing on the wall. This is the gracious way out. Lou Piniella has seen it all in his nearly 50 years in baseball. He has three championship rings, two as a player and one as a manager. He's had a proud and good baseball career. This Fan hopes he enjoys the rest of his life with fond reflection.
Saturday, June 26, 2010
The Cubs are So Messed Up
What came first, the chicken or the egg? What came first, player problems or hiring manager, Lou Piniella? The latest in a long line of zany Cubs' events occurred today when Carlos Zambrano seemed to go off his John Rocker after giving up some first inning runs. To see his tantrum close up, click here.
First of all, Piniella did the right thing in getting Zambrano out of there. The manager immediately removed the big pitcher from the dugout and sent him home. The pitcher was later suspended. For this particular situation, the manager handled the situation perfectly. But why do these things keep happening to the Cubs?
Stories have surfaced that there are lines drawn behind the scenes among Cubs' personnel. Apparently the divide seems to lie with Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano versus the rest of the team. Carlos Lee seems squarely apposed to the pitcher. Whose fault is all this? Is it possible to say not being privvy to the inner workings of the players' world.
Something has to give for the Cubs. Either the new owners clean house of Hendry, Piniella and the staff or Hendry takes a package...any package...to get Zambrano out of town.
What a mess.
First of all, Piniella did the right thing in getting Zambrano out of there. The manager immediately removed the big pitcher from the dugout and sent him home. The pitcher was later suspended. For this particular situation, the manager handled the situation perfectly. But why do these things keep happening to the Cubs?
Stories have surfaced that there are lines drawn behind the scenes among Cubs' personnel. Apparently the divide seems to lie with Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano versus the rest of the team. Carlos Lee seems squarely apposed to the pitcher. Whose fault is all this? Is it possible to say not being privvy to the inner workings of the players' world.
Something has to give for the Cubs. Either the new owners clean house of Hendry, Piniella and the staff or Hendry takes a package...any package...to get Zambrano out of town.
What a mess.
Friday, June 11, 2010
More Evidence in the Piniella Case
This writer has said it before in this space that Lou Piniella isn't the right fit for the Cubs and the team would be better off with a change. Evidence to support this belief comes from Al Yellon over and BleedCubbieBlue (http://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2010/6/10/1511018/some-disturbing-news-about-the). If Yellon is correct, or better put, if his source is correct, that's a real mess.
The clubhouse distemper seems to center around Aramis Ramirez and his perceived lack of effort and preparation. The source seems to indicate that lines have been drawn and center around Latin players versus non-Latin. That can't be a good thing when teammates are pulling against each other instead of for each other. And Yellon points the finger right at Piniella stating that a real leader wouldn't allow that in his clubhouse. The Fan agrees.
Of course, the Cubs' problems go beyond Piniella and the clubhouse. General Manager Hendry has simply constructed a poor club that is misshapen and too weak in too many areas. Yet, when you look at the team, it should be better than it is. Even the Pythagorean Won-Loss statistic (which is based in large part on the run differential) shows that the Cubs should have at least four more wins then they have.
The Fan has observed for quite some time that the Cubs play tighter than a new Miley Cyrus concert outfit. Piniella just breeds tension, plain and simple. And now, according to Bleed Cubbie Blue, Piniella's caustic personality doesn't carry over to his clubhouse and that clubhouse is a disaster.
It really is time to let Piniella go. The wildcard isn't out of reach and it isn't like the Reds and Cardinals are running away with things. Perhaps a fresh start would be just what the team needs. And it should be a guy who has proven he can run his own clubhouse.
The clubhouse distemper seems to center around Aramis Ramirez and his perceived lack of effort and preparation. The source seems to indicate that lines have been drawn and center around Latin players versus non-Latin. That can't be a good thing when teammates are pulling against each other instead of for each other. And Yellon points the finger right at Piniella stating that a real leader wouldn't allow that in his clubhouse. The Fan agrees.
Of course, the Cubs' problems go beyond Piniella and the clubhouse. General Manager Hendry has simply constructed a poor club that is misshapen and too weak in too many areas. Yet, when you look at the team, it should be better than it is. Even the Pythagorean Won-Loss statistic (which is based in large part on the run differential) shows that the Cubs should have at least four more wins then they have.
The Fan has observed for quite some time that the Cubs play tighter than a new Miley Cyrus concert outfit. Piniella just breeds tension, plain and simple. And now, according to Bleed Cubbie Blue, Piniella's caustic personality doesn't carry over to his clubhouse and that clubhouse is a disaster.
It really is time to let Piniella go. The wildcard isn't out of reach and it isn't like the Reds and Cardinals are running away with things. Perhaps a fresh start would be just what the team needs. And it should be a guy who has proven he can run his own clubhouse.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Zambrano Just the Latest Stupid Cubs' Decision
The big news out of Chicago the last couple of days is that Lou Piniella has pushed Carlos Zambrano to the bullpen. While this is shocking news isolated from all other Cubs' events of the past couple of seasons, taken in context with all the other stories and the news makes perfect sense. Zambrano will become the highest paid setup man in baseball and Piniella? Well, perhaps he'll feel better about himself for "sending the team a message."
Lou Pinella has had some success as a manager. His Mariners' teams of the past were legendary. But he has also thrown in the Tampa Bay years and from this faraway perch, Piniella simply hasn't handled the Cubs properly. His handling of the Bradley fiasco of a year ago was simply awful. Sure, Bradley brought a lot of it on himself, but Piniella didn't exactly help the cause. Piniella also hasn't handled Soriano very well either. First he let him lead off for far too long before the weight became so heavy that it nearly snapped the Cubs' necks and then he ineffectively deals with Soriano's occiasional lack of effort. And now we have Zambrano.
Zambrano doesn't seem like that bad a guy. He's sort of a Hispanic Joba Chamberlain with more success. He just has a lot of passion and he wears his emotions on his sleeve. Apparently, this has worn down Piniella's last nerve, which is ironic since Piniella was the same kind of player and then manager. It's funny that the manager cannot tolerate the same kind of behavior he himself exhibited countless times in his career.
First, let's take a look at the context. Ted Lilly is due to come off the disabled list. Gorzelanny, the epitome of an MLB journeyman is pitching well so far. Dempster is pitching well. Randy Wells in untouchable. Carlos Silva has been some sort of miracle and Zambrano has an ERA+ of 65. Add to that equation that the Cubs' bullpen has been just short of a disaster thus far and Zambrano is the odd man out, or the right man in the bullpen. Depends on how you look at it.
But here's the problem. There is no guarantee that Lilly will be effective out of the gate. There is no history to support Gorzelanny and Silva continuing their remarkable success. Marmol seems solid as the closer. Sean Marshall can be dominant and should be just fine as the set up guy. Russell is adequate and those should be your close game guys. Grabow is useful three out of every fourth outings. It's that fourth one that seems quite ugly. But limit him to LOOGY events for the most part and some mop up duty and he should be just fine. Why would you need Zambrano out there? Long relief is a mess. But how often would that be a problem?
Zambrano is a horse. He is a wild stallion at times and so he might run into some fences here and there, but the guy goes out there every year and gives you 200+ decent innings. Why mess with that? Why not start Lilly in the bullpen and earn his way back into the rotation after seeing how Gorzelanny and Silva fare down the road? If this is really about performance, we are only talking about one terrible start by Zambrano to open the season. He's been decent since and still leads the team in strikeouts. He'll be fine. Just give him the ball 32 times and he'll be good in 24 of them. That's all you can ask.
But no, that's not Piniella. That would make sense and he's more into being intense than into making sense. And the root word for, "intense" is "tense." And no better word describes the current mood of the Cubs after two years of drama. The Rockies learned last year what can happen when you replace a tense situation with a feel good guy like Jim Tracy. This Fan really feels like the Cubs need the same sort of breath of fresh air. The two problems here seem to be that Jim Hendry has no feel for building a winner and the talent that he has assembled can't take flight with the drama they are exposed to all the time.
Bring in a feel good guy who just lets the guys go out there and play and see what happens. It can't be any worse than the current results. While you're at it, bring up Sam Fuld and let him lead off and play every day and sit Fukodome. That way you have a feel good vibe for the whole team with Fuld's excitement and spunk giving a spark at the top of the line up.
What is obvious is that the Cubs in their current state are going nowhere. They are playing tighter than a kettle drum (ack! a hackneyed cliche!) and drama seems to follow them wherever they go. It's time for a change. In fact, it's long overdue.
Lou Pinella has had some success as a manager. His Mariners' teams of the past were legendary. But he has also thrown in the Tampa Bay years and from this faraway perch, Piniella simply hasn't handled the Cubs properly. His handling of the Bradley fiasco of a year ago was simply awful. Sure, Bradley brought a lot of it on himself, but Piniella didn't exactly help the cause. Piniella also hasn't handled Soriano very well either. First he let him lead off for far too long before the weight became so heavy that it nearly snapped the Cubs' necks and then he ineffectively deals with Soriano's occiasional lack of effort. And now we have Zambrano.
Zambrano doesn't seem like that bad a guy. He's sort of a Hispanic Joba Chamberlain with more success. He just has a lot of passion and he wears his emotions on his sleeve. Apparently, this has worn down Piniella's last nerve, which is ironic since Piniella was the same kind of player and then manager. It's funny that the manager cannot tolerate the same kind of behavior he himself exhibited countless times in his career.
First, let's take a look at the context. Ted Lilly is due to come off the disabled list. Gorzelanny, the epitome of an MLB journeyman is pitching well so far. Dempster is pitching well. Randy Wells in untouchable. Carlos Silva has been some sort of miracle and Zambrano has an ERA+ of 65. Add to that equation that the Cubs' bullpen has been just short of a disaster thus far and Zambrano is the odd man out, or the right man in the bullpen. Depends on how you look at it.
But here's the problem. There is no guarantee that Lilly will be effective out of the gate. There is no history to support Gorzelanny and Silva continuing their remarkable success. Marmol seems solid as the closer. Sean Marshall can be dominant and should be just fine as the set up guy. Russell is adequate and those should be your close game guys. Grabow is useful three out of every fourth outings. It's that fourth one that seems quite ugly. But limit him to LOOGY events for the most part and some mop up duty and he should be just fine. Why would you need Zambrano out there? Long relief is a mess. But how often would that be a problem?
Zambrano is a horse. He is a wild stallion at times and so he might run into some fences here and there, but the guy goes out there every year and gives you 200+ decent innings. Why mess with that? Why not start Lilly in the bullpen and earn his way back into the rotation after seeing how Gorzelanny and Silva fare down the road? If this is really about performance, we are only talking about one terrible start by Zambrano to open the season. He's been decent since and still leads the team in strikeouts. He'll be fine. Just give him the ball 32 times and he'll be good in 24 of them. That's all you can ask.
But no, that's not Piniella. That would make sense and he's more into being intense than into making sense. And the root word for, "intense" is "tense." And no better word describes the current mood of the Cubs after two years of drama. The Rockies learned last year what can happen when you replace a tense situation with a feel good guy like Jim Tracy. This Fan really feels like the Cubs need the same sort of breath of fresh air. The two problems here seem to be that Jim Hendry has no feel for building a winner and the talent that he has assembled can't take flight with the drama they are exposed to all the time.
Bring in a feel good guy who just lets the guys go out there and play and see what happens. It can't be any worse than the current results. While you're at it, bring up Sam Fuld and let him lead off and play every day and sit Fukodome. That way you have a feel good vibe for the whole team with Fuld's excitement and spunk giving a spark at the top of the line up.
What is obvious is that the Cubs in their current state are going nowhere. They are playing tighter than a kettle drum (ack! a hackneyed cliche!) and drama seems to follow them wherever they go. It's time for a change. In fact, it's long overdue.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Just One of Those Days
Ever have one of those days where the entire day seemed uphill? Where everything you picked up or tried to pick up ended on the floor and every job you attempted had to be done twice or three times to get correct? Yeah. It's been one of those days. Not sure what this post will do to correct things. Surely moods aren't the best moods to write posts from. Heck, that was a lousy sentence with poor construction. See?
As long as things seem more of the dark cloud variety today rather than the silver lining, this post might as well focus on some negative things. Some of them this space predicted long ago and some were just so surprising that it would have been impossible to predict. Either way, there is no joy in reporting on them. They just are what they are.
Let's start with the Cubs. Harden pitched another game on Wednesday and bears no resemblance to the pitcher he has always been before. He lasted all of three innings, walked three and gave up five hits. Granted, the Cubs played shoddy defense behind him and maybe that is the most telling thing about the Harden this year and last. But that can't completely explain how last year he was a combined 10-2 in 25 starts with a WHIP around 1 and 96 hits in 148 innings. This year, he has the same 25 starts and his WHIP is around 1.3 and he's given up 117 hits in 138 innings. That's still pretty impressive except that he only gave up eleven homers last year and has given up 23 this year. Plus, he's only averaged about five and a half innings a start.
For a while, it seemed that by the time Milton Bradley finished the season, his stats would be fairly respectable. But he has gone into another tailspin and is now likely to finish the season below .400 in slugging percentage and below .800 in OPS. Hardly what the Cubs were hoping for. He did manage to play his 123rd game Wednesday night, so that, at least, exceeded expectations.
What about Geovany Soto? He was one of the best catchers in the game last year. This year, he's just a shell of that and his stats in almost every category (except errors) are down this year.
When it is all said and done, it just seems like Lou Piniella is not the right guy for that team. Sure, he has a right to be upset and disgusted with the likes of Bradley and Zambrano. But that's the nature of today's players. Pineilla is a throw back to another era, and people aren't the same as they were then.
There are three teams that fielded starting line ups Wednesday night that did not include a .300 hitter. Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Is there something wrong with the water in that middle section of the country?
The Fan was feeling a little sorry for Mike Hampton today after it was learned that he had surgery to repair a completely torn rotator cuff and will miss all of next year. After all, the guy has tried really hard to compete and just can't stay healthy enough to do so. Then the Fan remembered all the money Hampton has made in the game of baseball and the sympathy went out the window. Hey, that's just the way the mood is today.
Speaking of health, Josh Hamilton will probably miss the rest of the year now. If you could have put Hamilton's numbers of a year ago on this year's Rangers team, how many more wins would the Rangers have? Would they still be in the race? As it is, the Rangers have died and Hamilton's season was stillborn from the start. It's hard to root against Hamilton who overcame so much to have a career again in baseball. His fragile health and his embarrassing bar fiasco have put an end to what was a pretty baseball story. Maybe next year.
Jimmy Rollins had an OBP of .287 the first half and .292 the second half. His second half has been more productive as his slugging percentage went from .355 the first half to .490 the second half. But even so, he has only walked ten times in the second half. Ten times. Can the Phillies really get away with a lead off batter in the playoffs who gets on base that seldom?
Earlier in the season, the Fan said that Jason Varitek was done. Comments were to the contrary as he started the year hitting some homers and stuff. But come on. His average is down to .213 and has particularly tanked since Victor Martinez came over from the Indians. He has had a brutal year with base runners stealing all over the place. Varitek's OPS and OPS+ are up slightly from a year ago, but slightly better than awful is still pretty bad.
And yeah, David Ortiz has hit 24 homers and his OPS the second half is .841 but he is still only batting .251 the second half. He is going to finish the season 30 points below last year in average, 40 points below last year's OBP, 50 points below last year's slugging percentage, 100 points behind last year's OPS and at least 25 points below last year's OPS+. And last year was a down year. Just to put things in perspective, Nick Swisher has a better OPS this season than Ortiz.
Incentive clauses are in the news these days. Magglio Ordonez reached enough at bats to automatically pick up his $18 million in salary next year. That's a lot of tamales for what is now a singles hitter. Kevin Millwood's next start will guarantee him $12 million next year. There is a lot of call for the Rangers to shut him down for the rest of the year. They can't. If they did, they would lose to the union and it will cost them that much anyway. And yeah, $12 million is a lot of money for a league average pitcher this year (his best in quite a while too).
As long as things seem more of the dark cloud variety today rather than the silver lining, this post might as well focus on some negative things. Some of them this space predicted long ago and some were just so surprising that it would have been impossible to predict. Either way, there is no joy in reporting on them. They just are what they are.
Let's start with the Cubs. Harden pitched another game on Wednesday and bears no resemblance to the pitcher he has always been before. He lasted all of three innings, walked three and gave up five hits. Granted, the Cubs played shoddy defense behind him and maybe that is the most telling thing about the Harden this year and last. But that can't completely explain how last year he was a combined 10-2 in 25 starts with a WHIP around 1 and 96 hits in 148 innings. This year, he has the same 25 starts and his WHIP is around 1.3 and he's given up 117 hits in 138 innings. That's still pretty impressive except that he only gave up eleven homers last year and has given up 23 this year. Plus, he's only averaged about five and a half innings a start.
For a while, it seemed that by the time Milton Bradley finished the season, his stats would be fairly respectable. But he has gone into another tailspin and is now likely to finish the season below .400 in slugging percentage and below .800 in OPS. Hardly what the Cubs were hoping for. He did manage to play his 123rd game Wednesday night, so that, at least, exceeded expectations.
What about Geovany Soto? He was one of the best catchers in the game last year. This year, he's just a shell of that and his stats in almost every category (except errors) are down this year.
When it is all said and done, it just seems like Lou Piniella is not the right guy for that team. Sure, he has a right to be upset and disgusted with the likes of Bradley and Zambrano. But that's the nature of today's players. Pineilla is a throw back to another era, and people aren't the same as they were then.
There are three teams that fielded starting line ups Wednesday night that did not include a .300 hitter. Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Is there something wrong with the water in that middle section of the country?
The Fan was feeling a little sorry for Mike Hampton today after it was learned that he had surgery to repair a completely torn rotator cuff and will miss all of next year. After all, the guy has tried really hard to compete and just can't stay healthy enough to do so. Then the Fan remembered all the money Hampton has made in the game of baseball and the sympathy went out the window. Hey, that's just the way the mood is today.
Speaking of health, Josh Hamilton will probably miss the rest of the year now. If you could have put Hamilton's numbers of a year ago on this year's Rangers team, how many more wins would the Rangers have? Would they still be in the race? As it is, the Rangers have died and Hamilton's season was stillborn from the start. It's hard to root against Hamilton who overcame so much to have a career again in baseball. His fragile health and his embarrassing bar fiasco have put an end to what was a pretty baseball story. Maybe next year.
Jimmy Rollins had an OBP of .287 the first half and .292 the second half. His second half has been more productive as his slugging percentage went from .355 the first half to .490 the second half. But even so, he has only walked ten times in the second half. Ten times. Can the Phillies really get away with a lead off batter in the playoffs who gets on base that seldom?
Earlier in the season, the Fan said that Jason Varitek was done. Comments were to the contrary as he started the year hitting some homers and stuff. But come on. His average is down to .213 and has particularly tanked since Victor Martinez came over from the Indians. He has had a brutal year with base runners stealing all over the place. Varitek's OPS and OPS+ are up slightly from a year ago, but slightly better than awful is still pretty bad.
And yeah, David Ortiz has hit 24 homers and his OPS the second half is .841 but he is still only batting .251 the second half. He is going to finish the season 30 points below last year in average, 40 points below last year's OBP, 50 points below last year's slugging percentage, 100 points behind last year's OPS and at least 25 points below last year's OPS+. And last year was a down year. Just to put things in perspective, Nick Swisher has a better OPS this season than Ortiz.
Incentive clauses are in the news these days. Magglio Ordonez reached enough at bats to automatically pick up his $18 million in salary next year. That's a lot of tamales for what is now a singles hitter. Kevin Millwood's next start will guarantee him $12 million next year. There is a lot of call for the Rangers to shut him down for the rest of the year. They can't. If they did, they would lose to the union and it will cost them that much anyway. And yeah, $12 million is a lot of money for a league average pitcher this year (his best in quite a while too).
Monday, June 29, 2009
Sweet Lou Gone Sour?
This post is difficult to write. Lou Piniella has always been a favorite ever since his playing days. He's always been a passionate, feisty player and manager in all his years in the game. As a manager, his teams have come in first place six times including two in a row for the Cubs. He won a World Series championship in 1990 with the Cincinnati Reds. But perhaps he isn't the right guy managing the current Chicago Cubs.
The Cubs came into the season after two first place finishes with extremely high expectations. Universally selected to win the division, the hopes of a desperate fan base again hope that this is the year. And it sure feels like the Cubs are playing tighter than a suspected heretic on the rack during the Inquisition. That tightness may well explain the blow ups we have seen all year by Zambrano, Bradley and others. In such a situation, Lou Piniella isn't exactly a loosey goosey kind of manager.
Piniella's intensity is perfect for a team that has lacked a spark for years. The Reds, Mariners and Cubs are perfect examples. He came in at a time when all three of those teams were spinning around and he brought intensity and turned them around. But it is possible that the same intensity wears on his players. The year after his Reds won the World Series, they came in fifth the year after. In Seattle, despite guys like Alex Rodriguez and Junior Griffey, his teams finished first three times, but never sustained that success the year after.
Obviously, the Fan does not have any inside dope on what goes on in the clubhouse or in the heads of the Cubs players. The observation while watching them playing lately is that they are so tight that they can't perform. They seem paralyzed.
Perhaps Pineilla has done all he can do. Perhaps he isn't the right person for this current situation. The Fan feels the same way about Jerry Manuel of the Mets. Manuel's body language is all wrong in the dugout. He is wearing too much on his sleeve. Torre and Cox are great because you can never tell from their demeanor if they are winning or losing. The Cubs, and the Mets for that matter, may still pull it together and win their respective divisions. But this observer isn't sure they can get it done with their personalities and the personalities of their respective teams.
The Cubs came into the season after two first place finishes with extremely high expectations. Universally selected to win the division, the hopes of a desperate fan base again hope that this is the year. And it sure feels like the Cubs are playing tighter than a suspected heretic on the rack during the Inquisition. That tightness may well explain the blow ups we have seen all year by Zambrano, Bradley and others. In such a situation, Lou Piniella isn't exactly a loosey goosey kind of manager.
Piniella's intensity is perfect for a team that has lacked a spark for years. The Reds, Mariners and Cubs are perfect examples. He came in at a time when all three of those teams were spinning around and he brought intensity and turned them around. But it is possible that the same intensity wears on his players. The year after his Reds won the World Series, they came in fifth the year after. In Seattle, despite guys like Alex Rodriguez and Junior Griffey, his teams finished first three times, but never sustained that success the year after.
Obviously, the Fan does not have any inside dope on what goes on in the clubhouse or in the heads of the Cubs players. The observation while watching them playing lately is that they are so tight that they can't perform. They seem paralyzed.
Perhaps Pineilla has done all he can do. Perhaps he isn't the right person for this current situation. The Fan feels the same way about Jerry Manuel of the Mets. Manuel's body language is all wrong in the dugout. He is wearing too much on his sleeve. Torre and Cox are great because you can never tell from their demeanor if they are winning or losing. The Cubs, and the Mets for that matter, may still pull it together and win their respective divisions. But this observer isn't sure they can get it done with their personalities and the personalities of their respective teams.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
The Cubs Sure Are a Fun Bunch
It never ceases to amaze this observer that a bunch of guys making millions playing a children's game they always dreamed of playing can be so stinking grumpy and unhappy. Take the Cubs. Please. Sorry. Couldn't resist. The Cubs have lots of talent. Everyone predicted them to take the NL Central. But all year long, there has been one controversy after another.
Much of the controversy seems to swirl around Milton Bradley and Carlos Zambrano. Bradley has crabbed about the umpires and the fans and it hasn't helped that he had a terrible start and can't seem to get untracked. Zambrano had his famous meltdown. Soto tested positive for pot while playing in the World Baseball Classic. Oops. Got to give him a sly smile on that one. After all, nobody has ever smoked weed in the Caribbean before, right?
Tonight seems to be the apex of the grumpiness. It seems that Milton Bradley had a couple of bad at bats and decided to throw things and beat up on the water cooler. Lou Piniella had seen that act one too many times and told him to take off his uniform and go home. Lou said in the press conference that he'd seen it one too many times and was sick of it. Apparently Piniella never got mad after an at bat before. Cha. Right.
It's doubtful that this is too much of a big deal. Bradley will probably come back apologetic. Piniella doesn't have a memory for such things and is not a grudge holder. But the bottom line here is: Come on, Folks. This is the major leagues. Have a little fun, will ya? Piniella's been around a long time. He's had feisty players before. This will settle down and if the Cubs can settle down and have some fun, they still have a great shot at winning the division.
Much of the controversy seems to swirl around Milton Bradley and Carlos Zambrano. Bradley has crabbed about the umpires and the fans and it hasn't helped that he had a terrible start and can't seem to get untracked. Zambrano had his famous meltdown. Soto tested positive for pot while playing in the World Baseball Classic. Oops. Got to give him a sly smile on that one. After all, nobody has ever smoked weed in the Caribbean before, right?
Tonight seems to be the apex of the grumpiness. It seems that Milton Bradley had a couple of bad at bats and decided to throw things and beat up on the water cooler. Lou Piniella had seen that act one too many times and told him to take off his uniform and go home. Lou said in the press conference that he'd seen it one too many times and was sick of it. Apparently Piniella never got mad after an at bat before. Cha. Right.
It's doubtful that this is too much of a big deal. Bradley will probably come back apologetic. Piniella doesn't have a memory for such things and is not a grudge holder. But the bottom line here is: Come on, Folks. This is the major leagues. Have a little fun, will ya? Piniella's been around a long time. He's had feisty players before. This will settle down and if the Cubs can settle down and have some fun, they still have a great shot at winning the division.
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
Lou Piniella: The Anti-Gaston
As written in a previous post, Cito Gaston gave his ace, Roy Halladay, more leeway than most modern day managers would. At nearly the same time, Lou Piniella showed no patience at all in a hot young pitcher and cost the Cubbies a game. And the way the Cubs are going, they cannot afford to be kicking away games.
Randy Wells has thrown four straight quality starts. Last night was his best yet as he gave up only two hits and carried a no-hitter late into the game. While Wells was throwing a masterpiece, his team had built up a five to nothing lead. Wells had thrown 89 pitches and Piniella came out to get him and gave the ball to Marmol. In the topsy-turvy world of major league relievers, Marmol has been throwing with mirrors this year. His ERA isn't that high, but as Rob Neyer pointed out in his blog, his strikeout rate is down and his walk rate is up.
Marmol gave up Wells' run (inherited base runner) and one of his own and now it's a 5-2 game. Gregg came in and finished off the Cubs with another blown save, allowing the Braves to tie the game and Heilman did to Cubs fans what he did to Mets' fans all last year.
The Fan's question is this: With Wells throwing so well and only throwing 89 pitches, why not let him go a little deeper into the eighth before yanking him? If he gets through the eighth, and the Fan has no reason to doubt that he would have, then the questionable closer gives up his three runs, and the Cubs win 5-3. Instead, Piniella felt better going with a shaky Marmol and predictable results happened. The closer finished the job and the Cubs lost. Too bad Kerry Wood is rotting away on an awful Indians team.
If the Cubs don't win the Central Division, they will look back on this game and a dozen others like it and see a ton of "what ifs" and a ton of lost opportunities.
Randy Wells has thrown four straight quality starts. Last night was his best yet as he gave up only two hits and carried a no-hitter late into the game. While Wells was throwing a masterpiece, his team had built up a five to nothing lead. Wells had thrown 89 pitches and Piniella came out to get him and gave the ball to Marmol. In the topsy-turvy world of major league relievers, Marmol has been throwing with mirrors this year. His ERA isn't that high, but as Rob Neyer pointed out in his blog, his strikeout rate is down and his walk rate is up.
Marmol gave up Wells' run (inherited base runner) and one of his own and now it's a 5-2 game. Gregg came in and finished off the Cubs with another blown save, allowing the Braves to tie the game and Heilman did to Cubs fans what he did to Mets' fans all last year.
The Fan's question is this: With Wells throwing so well and only throwing 89 pitches, why not let him go a little deeper into the eighth before yanking him? If he gets through the eighth, and the Fan has no reason to doubt that he would have, then the questionable closer gives up his three runs, and the Cubs win 5-3. Instead, Piniella felt better going with a shaky Marmol and predictable results happened. The closer finished the job and the Cubs lost. Too bad Kerry Wood is rotting away on an awful Indians team.
If the Cubs don't win the Central Division, they will look back on this game and a dozen others like it and see a ton of "what ifs" and a ton of lost opportunities.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Why It's Hard to Like National League Baseball
Watched two games today and both are reminders of why National League baseball is harder to like than American League baseball. The games in question were the Cubs/Brewers game and the Mets/Marlins. Before we get to the action, let the Fan say ahead of time that the game's purists might be a bit put off by this post. But keep an open mind.
Let's start with the Mets and Marlins. First, the Marlins look very tough right now. They play with a lot of enthusiasm, swing with aggression and seem to enjoy each other as teammates. They have a solid young core of players and if their pitching holds up the way they have started, they are going to be interesting to watch.
Okay. The game was still close. John Maine of the Mets had only given up two hits in five innings. Unfortunately, those two hits were monster homers by Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla. He had thrown 83 pitches through those five innings. On the other side, Anibal Sanchez kept the Mets scoreless through five innings but had a high pitch count (98) due to pitching deep into the count while striking out five and walking three. It was obvious that Sanchez wouldn't make it deep into the game.
In fact, Sanchez was replaced by Dan Meyer to start the top of the sixth. Meyer promptly gave up a homer to Carlos Beltran and then a single to Church. Schneider then sacrificed but Luis Castillo flied out making it two outs. Maine was due up next and according to the logic of current National League baseball, Sheffield was called upon to pinch hit. Sheffield walked but Reyes then flew out to end the inning.
And so Maine was out after only five innings. Sean Green was called in to pitch the sixth for the Mets and gave up a run but also struck out the side. The Mets scored two runs to tie the score in the top of the seventh. But the Mets were then forced (having used Green already) to bring in inexperienced Bobby Parnell, who has thrown a total of six innings in his big league career. Parnell gave up the go ahead run.
Though the Mets did tie the game up against the Marlins' closer, Matt Lindstrom--a real weakness for the Marlins by the way--in the top of the ninth. The feisty Marlins then won the game in the bottom of the ninth.
Now the point of all this is that in National League baseball's silent bylaws, the Mets had to pinch hit for John Maine. If this was American League baseball, Maine would have pitched at least another inning which would have set them up perfectly to bring Green in the seventh, Putz in the eighth and their closer in the ninth. Exposing their bullpen another inning led to a weaker pitcher being relied upon with the expected bad results.
Now many of you might be wagging your finger at the Fan stating that this is purist baseball and much better than that DH business. Well, if you say so. But the Fan has been around long enough to know that in purist baseball, the Drysdales, Koufaxes, Gibsons, and other National League pitchers of the past wouldn't have come out after five innings and 83 pitches. That is totally a modern phenomenon just as the DH is in the American League. In the "good old days," you would only pinch hit for the pitcher if he was getting roughed up or very late in the game.
Okay, let's go to the Cubs game against the Brewers. This is a tale of how a 4-3 game can take three hours and twelve minutes. Harden started for the Cubbies and Looper for the Brewers. Harden was fantastic and struck out ten batters in six innings, but was dinged for two runs, one of them earned. Looper only gave up one run in his five innings but had trouble with his control.
And so Seth McClung came in the top of the sixth and that's when the fun started.
First, McClung couldn't McCling to the lead and gave up a two run homer to back-up catcher Koyie Hill, who to this point in his career had a .292 slugging percentage in 240 big league at bats. Harden dispatched of the Brewers quickly in the bottom half of the sixth and then McClung got through the top of the seventh despite two more base runners.
Piniella then brings Heilman in to start the bottom of the seventh and he promptly walks Bill Hall, which is historically pretty hard to do. Jason Kendall successfully sacrifices Hall to second and out comes Piniella to summon Neal Cotts to LOOGY Craig Counsell, who is batting for McClung. Cotts promptly plunks Counsell who trots to first base.
So for those keeping score, we've had 16 warm up pitches and only 11 real pitches and a runner is on first and second and out pops Piniella again, because, Cotts is only a LOOGY. In comes Marmol who throws 8 more warm up pitches (we're up to 24 for the inning and two commercial breaks). Marmol, once presumably warm, got lucky when Weeks lined hard to second. He then walked Corey Hart to load the bases. Fortunately for the Cubs, Braun flew out to right to end the inning. No runs, three base runners, 24 warm up pitches and 27 real pitches.
Ted Coffey comes in for the Brewers in the top of the eighth and promptly gives up a double to Fontenot. TheRiot grounds out and then Coffey plunks the immortal Koyie Hill who trots to first. Aaron Miles pinch hits for Marmol (since this IS the National League) and promptly hits into a double play to end the inning.
Sean Marshall, not a LOOGY by definition and normally a starting pitcher, comes in for the Cubbies to face the lefty, Fielder. But he walks him. Up pops Piniella from the dugout using his National League exercise program and replaces Marshall with Vizcaino. So now we have sixteen warm up pitches and only five real pitches have been thrown.
Vizcaino gets lucky and J. J. Hardy's line shot is caught in deep left field. He then induces Cameron to dribble the ball back to him and Cameron is thrown out at first, Fielder moving to second. Piniella again pops out of the dugout and replaces Vizcaino with Kevin Gregg, the Cubs' closer. So we are again up to 24 warm up pitches, two commercial breaks and only 13 real pitches have been thrown. Oy. Gregg finishes out the inning without incident.
The Brewers go down easily in the bottom of the eighth and Gregg comes out for the ninth and promptly (the Fan is using that word far too often...must be this week's catchy word) blows the save.
The bottom line here is Piniella's fiddling with all those pitchers meant that Gregg was asked to have more than a three out save, not a good idea with this generation of closers (See? Not so purist). Plus, the fans had to endure 48 warm up pitches, four commercial breaks to account for 47 real pitches and a whole bunch of idle time. Wasn't that fun?
Let's start with the Mets and Marlins. First, the Marlins look very tough right now. They play with a lot of enthusiasm, swing with aggression and seem to enjoy each other as teammates. They have a solid young core of players and if their pitching holds up the way they have started, they are going to be interesting to watch.
Okay. The game was still close. John Maine of the Mets had only given up two hits in five innings. Unfortunately, those two hits were monster homers by Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla. He had thrown 83 pitches through those five innings. On the other side, Anibal Sanchez kept the Mets scoreless through five innings but had a high pitch count (98) due to pitching deep into the count while striking out five and walking three. It was obvious that Sanchez wouldn't make it deep into the game.
In fact, Sanchez was replaced by Dan Meyer to start the top of the sixth. Meyer promptly gave up a homer to Carlos Beltran and then a single to Church. Schneider then sacrificed but Luis Castillo flied out making it two outs. Maine was due up next and according to the logic of current National League baseball, Sheffield was called upon to pinch hit. Sheffield walked but Reyes then flew out to end the inning.
And so Maine was out after only five innings. Sean Green was called in to pitch the sixth for the Mets and gave up a run but also struck out the side. The Mets scored two runs to tie the score in the top of the seventh. But the Mets were then forced (having used Green already) to bring in inexperienced Bobby Parnell, who has thrown a total of six innings in his big league career. Parnell gave up the go ahead run.
Though the Mets did tie the game up against the Marlins' closer, Matt Lindstrom--a real weakness for the Marlins by the way--in the top of the ninth. The feisty Marlins then won the game in the bottom of the ninth.
Now the point of all this is that in National League baseball's silent bylaws, the Mets had to pinch hit for John Maine. If this was American League baseball, Maine would have pitched at least another inning which would have set them up perfectly to bring Green in the seventh, Putz in the eighth and their closer in the ninth. Exposing their bullpen another inning led to a weaker pitcher being relied upon with the expected bad results.
Now many of you might be wagging your finger at the Fan stating that this is purist baseball and much better than that DH business. Well, if you say so. But the Fan has been around long enough to know that in purist baseball, the Drysdales, Koufaxes, Gibsons, and other National League pitchers of the past wouldn't have come out after five innings and 83 pitches. That is totally a modern phenomenon just as the DH is in the American League. In the "good old days," you would only pinch hit for the pitcher if he was getting roughed up or very late in the game.
Okay, let's go to the Cubs game against the Brewers. This is a tale of how a 4-3 game can take three hours and twelve minutes. Harden started for the Cubbies and Looper for the Brewers. Harden was fantastic and struck out ten batters in six innings, but was dinged for two runs, one of them earned. Looper only gave up one run in his five innings but had trouble with his control.
And so Seth McClung came in the top of the sixth and that's when the fun started.
First, McClung couldn't McCling to the lead and gave up a two run homer to back-up catcher Koyie Hill, who to this point in his career had a .292 slugging percentage in 240 big league at bats. Harden dispatched of the Brewers quickly in the bottom half of the sixth and then McClung got through the top of the seventh despite two more base runners.
Piniella then brings Heilman in to start the bottom of the seventh and he promptly walks Bill Hall, which is historically pretty hard to do. Jason Kendall successfully sacrifices Hall to second and out comes Piniella to summon Neal Cotts to LOOGY Craig Counsell, who is batting for McClung. Cotts promptly plunks Counsell who trots to first base.
So for those keeping score, we've had 16 warm up pitches and only 11 real pitches and a runner is on first and second and out pops Piniella again, because, Cotts is only a LOOGY. In comes Marmol who throws 8 more warm up pitches (we're up to 24 for the inning and two commercial breaks). Marmol, once presumably warm, got lucky when Weeks lined hard to second. He then walked Corey Hart to load the bases. Fortunately for the Cubs, Braun flew out to right to end the inning. No runs, three base runners, 24 warm up pitches and 27 real pitches.
Ted Coffey comes in for the Brewers in the top of the eighth and promptly gives up a double to Fontenot. TheRiot grounds out and then Coffey plunks the immortal Koyie Hill who trots to first. Aaron Miles pinch hits for Marmol (since this IS the National League) and promptly hits into a double play to end the inning.
Sean Marshall, not a LOOGY by definition and normally a starting pitcher, comes in for the Cubbies to face the lefty, Fielder. But he walks him. Up pops Piniella from the dugout using his National League exercise program and replaces Marshall with Vizcaino. So now we have sixteen warm up pitches and only five real pitches have been thrown.
Vizcaino gets lucky and J. J. Hardy's line shot is caught in deep left field. He then induces Cameron to dribble the ball back to him and Cameron is thrown out at first, Fielder moving to second. Piniella again pops out of the dugout and replaces Vizcaino with Kevin Gregg, the Cubs' closer. So we are again up to 24 warm up pitches, two commercial breaks and only 13 real pitches have been thrown. Oy. Gregg finishes out the inning without incident.
The Brewers go down easily in the bottom of the eighth and Gregg comes out for the ninth and promptly (the Fan is using that word far too often...must be this week's catchy word) blows the save.
The bottom line here is Piniella's fiddling with all those pitchers meant that Gregg was asked to have more than a three out save, not a good idea with this generation of closers (See? Not so purist). Plus, the fans had to endure 48 warm up pitches, four commercial breaks to account for 47 real pitches and a whole bunch of idle time. Wasn't that fun?
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