MONEY BALL keeps on rolling!!! Billy Beane has brought up one of the youngsters he acquired this past season, retooling his ballclub. The Oakland A’s don’t have alot of money to keep their established stars. So instead, they need to rely on a good farm system and the ability to bring in blue chippers from other organizations when the talent on the A’s get too overpriced for their budget.

Some of the talent they’ve jetisoned recently has been Mark Mulder, Barry Zito, Dan Haren, & Nick Swisher. Now with alot of teams, getting rid of that much talent would mean disaster. But that’s not the case with the A’s. Oakland is currently in 2nd place in the AL West with a record of 29-26. While nobody expects this team to be there at the end, it’s something they’re only 2 1/2 games behind the LA Angels of Anaheim.

The pitching staff is pretty much made over, with a rotation of Rich Harden (if his arm stays on), Justin Duchscherer (from bullpen to disabled list to the rotation), Greg Smith (a lefty prospect acquired from the D*Backs), Joe Blanton (will get his 30+ starts in), and Chad Gaudin (can work the rotation or the pen). If anybody falters, there are a couple of highly touted hurlers waiting in the wings, Gio Gonzalez (a nice lefty) & Fautino De Los Santos (a fireballing righty), both picked up from the White Sox. Huston Street is still around to close out the games, one of the best, and still young enough to stay in Oakland, for now.

The infield is made up of some veterans, the oft-injured Bobby Crosby & Eric Chavez at SS & 3B respectively, with Mark Ellis playing 2B. 1B Daric Barton & C Kurt Suzuki are two youngsters, who’ve been holding their own, but look to be good ones. Beane brought in DH Mike Sweeney from KC and brought back Frank Thomas, after Toronto cut him loose, both at bargain basement prices.

Speaking of bargains, Emil Brown has 37 RBIs for the A’s in 53 games this year. A young talented outfielder from Iowa, acquired from Chicago, is Ryan Sweeney. Then there’s Travis Buck, who batted in the .280s as a rookie, last year. A couple of other castoffs on the team are Jack Cust (who can hit the ball as far as anybody) and Rajai Davis.

After all this talk about the A’s, it’s time to talk about the man of the hour, Carlos Gonzalez. Carlos was one of the best prospects with Arizona. Gonzalez is a lefthanded hitting outfielder, with a line drive stroke. The Venezuelan youngster was hitting .293 at Sacramento when he was called up to the big club. In his first game he was two for three, with two doubles, and an RBI. This kid is a special player, he belongs. Believe it or not, the pipeline’s not dry yet as there are still a couple of players down there, power hitting firstbaseman Chris Carter (whom the Sox traded to the Diamondbacks for Carlos Quentin) & always hustling switch-hitting outfielder Aaron Cunningham.

Tags: Rookie Watch by Teddy Ballgame
No Comments »

The Cincinnati Reds have finally called up phenom Jay Bruce. Bruce is a 6′3″ 205 pound outfielder from Beaumont, Texas. Jay is the #1 prospect in all of baseball and it looks like there’s still plenty of time for him to make a strong run for Rookie of the Year. At Louisville this year he was hitting .364 with ten home runs, 37 RBIs, and 8 stolen bases.

I saw Jay Bruce in Dunedin, FL (home of the Toronto Blue Jays, a looong way from Toronto) this spring when the Reds came to Dunedin. Alot of the regulars didn’t make the trip (where’s Junior?), but that was okay with me because I wanted to see Bruce play. He didn’t disappoint that day, got a hit, ran like the wind, and patrolled centerfield like he belonged.

Before the game I had to take care of some business in the Men’s room. Standing in front of a urinal a few down was a gentleman in a Reds cap, who struck up a conversation with me. It turns out it was none other than Jay Bruce’s Dad. He was a very nice man, explaining how the offer from the Reds was just too good to pass up. Jay was all set to accept a college baseball scholarship before the Reds made Bruce their man.

I’m very excited to see Bruce in action in the big leagues starting tonite. The Reds will play host to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Tags: Rookie Watch by Teddy Ballgame
2 Comments »

Actually John Lannan is a young lefty with the Washinton Nationals, not a member of the Band from Liverpool. Although Lannan is only a .500 pitcher with an ERA in the mid-threes, he is starting to get noticed around the league. Last night John faced the very tough lineup of the Houston Astros, allowing one run on seven hits over six innings of work. In the sixth he looked to be in trouble when Lance Berkman & Carlos Lee reached base with nobody out, but the unflapable rookie induced Miguel Tejada to rap into a 6-4-3 doubleplay and then got the next hitter to ground to short to get out of the jam.

The 6′5″ 200 pound lefty out of Mineola, NY, a product of Siena was drafted in the 11th round of the 2005 draft. In his last year at Siena he was 10-2 with a nifty 2.29 ERA. Then last year Lannan was was 12-3 cruising through A+, AA, & AAA, before being called up to the Nats. With Washington he had an ERA of 4.15 with a 2-2 mark in six starts.

In his major league debut against the Phillies on July 26, 2007, John hit Chase Utley with a pitch breaking Utley’s hand, then he hit Ryan Howard, and was ejected from the game, becoming the first rookie pitcher ejected from his debut.

On August 6th Lannan found himself on center stage as he faced the Giants at AT&T Park in SF in Barry Bonds’ in his first start after tying Hank Aaron’s alltime home run mark. Bonds didn’t fare well in his four plate appearances against the 22 year old lefty, fouling to 3rd, walking, grounding into a doubleplay, and striking out. Despite his efforts against the Giants, the Nationals lost the game 3-2 in eleven innings.

Lannan is 3-3 with a 3-3 record in seven starts this year. This is a special rookie, with the heart of a lion, who should have a long & successful major league career.

Tags: Rookie Watch by Teddy Ballgame
No Comments »

Nick Adenhart has been called up by the Angels and will start tonight’s game against Oakland.

I saw Nick pitch 6 scoreless innings (3 hits) in spring training. It was the day I went to Tempe Diablo while the rest of the group saw the historic “first-ever Dodgers in Arizona spring training game” against the White Sox at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Adenhart (age 21) is 4-0 at Salt Lake City with an ERA under 1.00. He is the Angels Number One pitching prospect.

He will start in Dustin Moseley’s spot. Moseley has been moved to the bullpen, but not before costing NickV a couple of bucks.

I’m sure the plan is to start Adenhart 3 times. Then Lackey will be back and Adenhart is slated to return to AAA.

But what if Adenhart is 3-0? Would the Halos think about keeping him, going with a rotation of Lackey, Weaver, Saunders, Santana and Adenhart?

“Dreaming is free”– Debbie Harry.

DonS.

Tags: Rookie Watch by DonS
2 Comments »

Through five innings of his major league debut Johnny Cueto is making it look much too easy. Cueto has a perfect game with eight K’s and the Reds lead the Diamondbacks 3-0. Johnny is only 5′10″ tall, but has the heart of a lion and is shaking off his veteran catcher in his first big league start. He is pitching with a purpose.

I saw this kid in the grapefruit league when I saw the Reds in Dunedin. As I was leaving the ballpark I had to ask a scout with a gun what he had “that Cueto guy” clocked at, between 92-94 was his reply.

Johnny Cueto (win) 7 IP, 1 HR (Upton HR), 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K

Tags: Linescores of the Day, Rookie Watch, Spring Training by Teddy Ballgame
No Comments »

Jay Bruce, named #1 Prospect by MiLB.com and Baseball America, has been sent down to the minors by the Reds. 

This news will no doubt get the Baker-haters fuming.  I know a few who say that Dusty doesn’t like new kids and will only play veterans.  With the signing of the similarly left-handed CF Corey Patterson, I have to say it looks a lot like that.   My guess however, is that it’s a case of a crowded outfield.

Outwardly at least, Bruce seems to have the right idea:

“I knew what they’d tell me when I went in there,” Bruce said at the Reds complex in Sarasota, Fla. “You don’t want to get sent down. It’s disappointing. But I will feed off of it, go to Louisville and play well.”

I’m curious to what Zealot co-blogger Teddy Ballgame thinks.  He saw Bruce play down in spring training and even chatted up his father. 

Tags: Rookie Watch, Spring Training by The Baseball Zealot
1 Comment »

The White Sox signed Cuban infielder/outfielder Alexei Ramirez to a four year $4.75 million dollar deal. Alexei’s natural position is SS, but that’s Orlando Cabrera’s spot. Ramirez can also play 2B & CF, both positions are wide open. He had 20 homers to lead Cuba in that category before going to the Dominican Republic. This guy is not a base stealer and cannot be considered as a leadoff candidate. He’s no Fukadome, but still a good signing.

Tags: Articles by Teddy Ballgame, Hot Stove, Rookie Watch, White Sox by Teddy Ballgame
No Comments »

I am always intrigued by the Rule V Draft. It is where minor league ballplayers get the opportunity to make it to the big leagues. Major league clubs choose Rule V selectees for $50,000, players chosen must stay on the major league roster for the full season, or offered back to their original club for $25,000. I don’t think these numbers have changed in some time. These prices seem to be throwback prices in today’s multi million dollar industry.

Tim Lahey was the first player taken in this year’s Rule V Draft. He was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays from the Minnesota Twins organization, and sold to the Chicago Cubs. The Twins converted Lahey to relief pitcher after selecting the Princeton catcher in the 20th round. Last year Tim appeared in 50 games in Double A, posting an 8-4 record, with a 3.45 ERA.

Next up the Pittsburgh Pirates selected former Minnesota Twin farm hand Evan Meek from the Tampa Bay Rays. Evan Meek is a righthand specialist reliever who struckout 69 batters over 67 innings at Double A, and then enjoyed success in the AFL.

Randor Bierd in in 6′4″ relief pither out of Santo Domingo of the Dominican Republic. He was with the Detroit Tigers before being chosen by the Baltimore Orioles. Bierd has electric stuff, striking out 245 batters in a little over 239 innings pitched throughout his minor league career. Randor enjoyed success last season as a relief pitcher, being converted from a starter.

The Chicago White Sox might have lost a good one in Fernando Hernandez. Hernandez was selected by the Oakland A’s. Fernando allowed no runs in 12 appearances in the AFL, after striking out 84 men in just over 85 innings in Double A in 2007.

Something clicked last season for 23 year old former first round pick Matt Whitney who blasted 32 home runs in high A. The Cleveland Indians lost this slugger to the Washinton Nationals. Injuries have delayed his progress to the show, but he can make an impact if he can stay healthy.

Former Cleveland Indians farm hand Brian Barton was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals. The speedy outfielder has posted numbers throughout his minor league career, a .316 average, and a very impressive .416 OBP.

These are some of the players chosen in this year’s Rule V Draft. You’d be wrong if you thought, nobody ever makes it as a Rule V selection. Just last year Josh Hamilton & Joakim Soria were taken, Dan Uggla a couple of year’s back, and once upon a time Johan Santana was chosen by the Minnesota Twins from the Houston Astros.

Tags: Hot Stove, Rookie Watch by Teddy Ballgame
1 Comment »

Josh Anderson (photo Jim Pierce)

Josh Anderson became the first rookie to reach base six times in a game since Arizona’s Conor Jackson on Aug. 25, 2006, and he was the first Astros rookie to do it since Joe Morgan on July 9, 1965 in a 12-inning game in Milwaukee. Anderson, who played 131 games with triple-A Round Rock, where he batted .273 with 17 doubles 6 triples & 2 homers, before arriving Sept. 1, had five hits and a walk.

“I’m a little bit surprised,” said Josh, who started his third straight game in centerfield and raised his batting average to .500. “I had a six-hit game in A-ball in 2004 and I had five hits one other time in the minors. It was just one of those days when you feel good, you feel locked in. It’s hard to describe. I guess it’s like a basketball player hitting several threes in a row.”

Tags: Articles by Teddy Ballgame, Linescores of the Day, Rookie Watch by Teddy Ballgame
No Comments »

I was a little surprised to hear that the Cubs acquired Steve Trachsel from the Orioles.  It’s conventional wisdom that the Cubs already have a solid, deep rotation.  That said, there are reasons that down the stretch and beyond, he may be useful. 

With proper rest, Trach can pitch effectively if not overpoweringly. His lifetime ERA at Wrigley is solid (4.13).  And beyond all that, Trachsel has a way to pitch above his talents. 

Most of all, my bet is that the Cubs are trying to cover their bases.  It’s all too easy for a pitcher to fall to injuries right now, they are in the midst of a 22-game stretch without a day off. 

Call-ups

Geovany Soto

Somebody else who will be joining the squad will be catcher Geovany Soto.  What a season he’s having in AAA!  With 106 rbis and 31 doubles and a .353 average, he won the PCL’s MVP award. 

I’m really looking forward to seeing what he can do.

Tags: Cubs, Minor Leagues, Rookie Watch by The Baseball Zealot
No Comments »