Friday, June 18, 2004
Arrrrrrrgh, Matey!
Shiver me timbers! The Pirates swabbed the deck with the Angels this weekend, winning 2 of 3. The "A" marked the spot for them to get their whoop up on, avastin' the scarvy scum that was the Halo offense. There were reports last night after the game of Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon hanging around the visiting Angels clubhouse, asking anyone who would listen if "Barty wanted a cracker." Apparently he was happy about Colon forking up three bombs to his starved-for-offense Buc team. It was nasty--Colon's performance, I mean. Two of those homers were to Tike Redman. Tike Redman. He of the .620 OPS Tike Redman. Gar! The Halos have now walked the plank in 9 of their last 12 games. Are you tired of pirate aphorisms? Well, then a yo ho, yo ho...let's move on.
Player Rater Rankings: Adam Kennedy: 990, Me: 989
That's a bit of an exaggeration, but unfortunately not much. Remember when I callously referred to Tike Redman's low .620 OPS just a few lines ago? Well, AK's is .602. This is the man I said in March was "the best choice for the 2B/SS spot in MLB"--another shining reason why you should probably never listen to me. If he wasn't on pace for 20 SB (which, in my defense, I did call for), he'd be absolutely worthless. I drafted him on all three of my "important" teams and he's now a member on a grand total of zero of them. If I were you (44% of you still own him in mixed leagues), I'd cut bait unless you really need the speed. Better options include Pokey Reese (not kidding), D'Angelo Jimenez, Luis Rivas, and Ryan Freel, who are all owned at less percentage than AK.
From the "Quote of the Week" Department
"Clemens has to face me too." This is Ramon Ortiz on the prospect of having to hit against Roger Clemens on Saturday in Houston. Yeah, you know, the Rocket actually called me last night 'cause he couldn't sleep. He asked me, since I cover the Angels, would I know any good way to approach the homer-inducing meat that Ramon throws. He was really concerned about it. He figured if he did smack one out, would he lose too much leg strength running around the bases and not be able to provide the 'Stros with a good enough performance on the hill? I told him to saunter around the bases. He seemed okay with that. All kidding aside, Ramon's been stellar outta the pen and will get the nod on Saturday for the DLed Sele. Against the Rocket, though, I'd wouldn't pick him up.
Mending Wings: A New Episode
The Angels continue to send their share of players to the DL. Troy Percival threw for the first time yesterday and is targeting a return in the first week of July. Bengie Molina is eligible to come off the DL on Saturday. Scioscy says he will but I'd wait on BM (no, not bowel movement) for now. Bengie isn't widely sought after in mixed leagues (2%) but if he were to be healthy (only 114 ABs so far) he's on pace for 17 HR and 92 RBI with 500 ABs. Of course, he most certainly won't reach that number, but it's just an idea of how good he could be if he was 100%. Eck could see DL time, and he won't be much use this weekend, one way or the other. Erstad is back, wearing a knee brace on the field, so you might not see too many SB attempts for now.
Arthritis? Can't stop me!
Garret Anderson it hitting .414 since his return from the DL with early inflammatory undifferentiated arthritis. He's gone deep twice, with 6 runs scored and 4 RBI in 7 games. I'd say that's a pretty strong return. If you wanted to make a deal for GA, it's probably already too late. I'd just like to extend a very hearty welcome back to Anderson, who was certainly in a lot of pain for a while, but it's obvious that he's not feeling much now on the field with his performance. I guess doctors really can help--once they know what's wrong. Welcome back, GA. Keep tearin' it up. Of course, with him burnin' up at clean-up, that only makes Guerrero and Guillen more dangerous. Imagine if Glaus was healthy...okay, no, that's just torture.
Minor League Studs
The Angels future 3B prospect Dallas McPherson is currently hitting .329 with 20 HR, 67 RBI, and 6 SB in 66 games at AA Arkansas. Go on. Salivate. He's slugging .672 and the only thing Arkansas fans are wondering is, "How long until he gets the call?" The Angels want to bring him along slowly--and let's hope they do. He's yet to play in AAA, experience he really needs. His defense is somewhat atrocious, with 12 errors so far this season. Scioscy says he still has holes in his swing but seems to have figured out AA ball. I'd say. Here's to hoping they take it slow. He's only 23. Also, for those who had high hopes for the recently demoted Casey Kotchman, he may be done in the majors until at least September, but don't fear. He's a future .300 hitter. You'll see.
Odds and Ends
If you haven't checked out the ITH Fantasy All-Star teams at the column site (insidethehalo.blogspot.com), Fantasy Commish Eric Karabell was gracious enough to post them on the main fantasy games page as well as the front baseball page. Thanks, EK. Check them out, e-mail me at insidethehalo@insightbb.com, and tell me what you think or send me your own list to debate. . .The DaVanon/Salmon situation could come to a head soon. Keep an eye out to see how Scioscy plays it because it could have fantasy repercussions. I'll keep you posted. . .I went to see Griffey hit 500 at Cincinnati twice this week and was treated to two Reds wins but no Griff-bombs. History says Griffey should've hit 500 by now. More on that at ITH soon. Check it out. For the Angels, Matt Allen--ESPN.
Player Rater Rankings: Adam Kennedy: 990, Me: 989
That's a bit of an exaggeration, but unfortunately not much. Remember when I callously referred to Tike Redman's low .620 OPS just a few lines ago? Well, AK's is .602. This is the man I said in March was "the best choice for the 2B/SS spot in MLB"--another shining reason why you should probably never listen to me. If he wasn't on pace for 20 SB (which, in my defense, I did call for), he'd be absolutely worthless. I drafted him on all three of my "important" teams and he's now a member on a grand total of zero of them. If I were you (44% of you still own him in mixed leagues), I'd cut bait unless you really need the speed. Better options include Pokey Reese (not kidding), D'Angelo Jimenez, Luis Rivas, and Ryan Freel, who are all owned at less percentage than AK.
From the "Quote of the Week" Department
"Clemens has to face me too." This is Ramon Ortiz on the prospect of having to hit against Roger Clemens on Saturday in Houston. Yeah, you know, the Rocket actually called me last night 'cause he couldn't sleep. He asked me, since I cover the Angels, would I know any good way to approach the homer-inducing meat that Ramon throws. He was really concerned about it. He figured if he did smack one out, would he lose too much leg strength running around the bases and not be able to provide the 'Stros with a good enough performance on the hill? I told him to saunter around the bases. He seemed okay with that. All kidding aside, Ramon's been stellar outta the pen and will get the nod on Saturday for the DLed Sele. Against the Rocket, though, I'd wouldn't pick him up.
Mending Wings: A New Episode
The Angels continue to send their share of players to the DL. Troy Percival threw for the first time yesterday and is targeting a return in the first week of July. Bengie Molina is eligible to come off the DL on Saturday. Scioscy says he will but I'd wait on BM (no, not bowel movement) for now. Bengie isn't widely sought after in mixed leagues (2%) but if he were to be healthy (only 114 ABs so far) he's on pace for 17 HR and 92 RBI with 500 ABs. Of course, he most certainly won't reach that number, but it's just an idea of how good he could be if he was 100%. Eck could see DL time, and he won't be much use this weekend, one way or the other. Erstad is back, wearing a knee brace on the field, so you might not see too many SB attempts for now.
Arthritis? Can't stop me!
Garret Anderson it hitting .414 since his return from the DL with early inflammatory undifferentiated arthritis. He's gone deep twice, with 6 runs scored and 4 RBI in 7 games. I'd say that's a pretty strong return. If you wanted to make a deal for GA, it's probably already too late. I'd just like to extend a very hearty welcome back to Anderson, who was certainly in a lot of pain for a while, but it's obvious that he's not feeling much now on the field with his performance. I guess doctors really can help--once they know what's wrong. Welcome back, GA. Keep tearin' it up. Of course, with him burnin' up at clean-up, that only makes Guerrero and Guillen more dangerous. Imagine if Glaus was healthy...okay, no, that's just torture.
Minor League Studs
The Angels future 3B prospect Dallas McPherson is currently hitting .329 with 20 HR, 67 RBI, and 6 SB in 66 games at AA Arkansas. Go on. Salivate. He's slugging .672 and the only thing Arkansas fans are wondering is, "How long until he gets the call?" The Angels want to bring him along slowly--and let's hope they do. He's yet to play in AAA, experience he really needs. His defense is somewhat atrocious, with 12 errors so far this season. Scioscy says he still has holes in his swing but seems to have figured out AA ball. I'd say. Here's to hoping they take it slow. He's only 23. Also, for those who had high hopes for the recently demoted Casey Kotchman, he may be done in the majors until at least September, but don't fear. He's a future .300 hitter. You'll see.
Odds and Ends
If you haven't checked out the ITH Fantasy All-Star teams at the column site (insidethehalo.blogspot.com), Fantasy Commish Eric Karabell was gracious enough to post them on the main fantasy games page as well as the front baseball page. Thanks, EK. Check them out, e-mail me at insidethehalo@insightbb.com, and tell me what you think or send me your own list to debate. . .The DaVanon/Salmon situation could come to a head soon. Keep an eye out to see how Scioscy plays it because it could have fantasy repercussions. I'll keep you posted. . .I went to see Griffey hit 500 at Cincinnati twice this week and was treated to two Reds wins but no Griff-bombs. History says Griffey should've hit 500 by now. More on that at ITH soon. Check it out. For the Angels, Matt Allen--ESPN.
