Good evening everyone. Before I have to run off to my Depictions of Italian-Americans in Cinema class, I thought I'd share a few thoughts.
First, Opening Day was a disappointment. It was a crappy game and we didn't get what we expected. We'll get 'em for the next 161, though. That didn't stop Wallace Matthews from making a stupid argument though. How the first game of the year was a case for Joba in the pen is just beyond me. The Yankees were trailing for most of the game. How would a great relief performance have helped? It's not the bullpen's fault Rob Thompson made a bad call that got Nady called out. It's not the bullpen's fault Girardi put a sac bunt on instead of trying to score the run. It's not the bullpen's fault Derek Jeter couldn't hit a fly ball to get Ramiro Pena home. It's not the bullpen's fault that Mark Teixeira couldn't get Pena home with two outs. Whatever.
Second, it's a bittersweet weekend/week for UConn basketball. The men were eliminated by MUS in the Final Four in what was probably their worst game of the year. Shaky shooting, dismal defense, foul free throw shooting, and repulsive rebounding. On the other hand, the women completed a perfect 39-0 season, beating Lousiville last night in the championship. Congrats, girls.
Third, there's two articles from Beyond the Boxscore that caught my attention. The first is one about catching prospects and their arms. This article tells us one thing we knew for sure: Jesus Montero is a much better hitter than he is a fielder. 75% of guys are able to steal off of him successfully. Ouch. The surprising thing is how poor Austin Romine's percentage was: 82.4%. That's just...wow. Yuck. What's "unsettling" about this is that Romine was supposed to be the good defender, not the bad one! I guess this is just another divide between stats and scouts that will have to work itself out. On a related note, there's the second article about CF prospects. Austin Jackson was basically the second worst minor league CF last year. This is a stark contrast to scouts who've touted him as very good in the field. Austin's defense (and his K/BB rate) are something we'll have to keep an eye on this year. If the defense can't improve, he might be relegated to a corner OF position and though A-Jax has a pretty good bad, it's not good enough to be a LF/RF bat.
Showing posts with label UConn Basketball. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UConn Basketball. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
A Little Bit of Everything
Spring Training NotesFirst off, I watched my second Spring Training game today as the Yankees defeated the Astros, 3-1. The best part of this game was definitely A.J. Burnett's four spectacular innings of work to start the ball game. He pitched a perfect four frames while striking out three. What was most impressive and encouraging about the performance was with how little effort Burnett seemed to be throwing, despite radar gun readings that had his fastball sitting at 93-96. His accuracy was incredible as he worked the corners deftly and his breaking ball looked as sharp as it would in mid-season.
At the plate today, the Yankees didn't do too much. Johnny Damon's laser of a home run was really the only highlight. The other half of the split squad game, the one I wish was televised, was much more offensive minded. Both Austin Jackson and Jesus Montero hit home runs, the latter's being a grand slam. Every Yankee fan ought to keep a sharp eye on these two, as they are a huge part of the future of the New York Yankees.
In other ST news, Robinson Cano and Damaso Marte returned from the WBC with injuries that appear to be minor, but I'm cautious, as I am with any Yankee injury. Is the WBC to blame? Probably not wholly, but I still don't like the tournament for a variety of reasons. The first is that it simply takes away time players should have with their club teams. Second is that it's far too early for a playoff-like atmosphere. Third, I just don't like it when sports have to act as a veil for petty nationalism--this applies to the Olympics as well. If it's really all about the sport, why do the teams have to be national ones? If I had my way, I'd eliminate the WBC altogether. Despite that, though, I realize it's here to stay and is a good concept. Changes, however, should be made.
The timing is not one of those changes, despite the fact that it is poor. However, March is the lesser of a multitude of timing evils. Putting it mid-season would be moronic, as would putting it post-playoffs. What I would change is the teams. Instead of the teams being countries, they would be the winners of that country's league, meaning this year the US would've sent the Phillies to the WBC, Japan would've sent NPB's champion, and so on. I think this would give the world a much stronger idea of who baseball's best country is. Of course, there are pitfalls to this solution as well. Do we really think the Italian league champs would stand a chance against the Phillies? The teams also change year to year, what with free agent acquisitions and trades and what not, but whatever. It's still more entertaining to me than watching petty nationalism played out on a baseball field. This also may hurt the team's chances to mix younger players into the Spring Training fold due to the season-like atmosphere, but they could probably find time against the lesser teams. This idea isn't much better than the current WBC, but I think it's still an improvement. Either way, the WBC sucks.
UConn Basketball Six fuckin' overtimes. I stayed up for the whole damn thing and they lost. I was furious. I hate Syracuse. Jim Boehiem's alright but the players and the team itself, forget 'em. There is no one in college basketball I hate more than Eric Devendorf and his little eyebrow-pencil looking beard. Anyway, I don't think this hurts UConn's chances at a one or two seed in the Big Dance, but I'm still weary of the team. Losing Dyson really hurt and I think other teams have figured out how to attack Hasheem Thabeet: go right at him and try to out muscle him. UConn has the talent to make it all the way to the Final Four but they do have weaknesses, mostly three point shooting and free-throw shooting as well. If they are going to make a long tourney run, Thabeet will have to toughen up a bit, Adrien will have to regain his scoring form from early in the season, AJ Price will need to keep up the hot three point shooting, and Kemba Walker will have to be, well, Kemba walker. I've said it before and I'll say it again, in 2-3 years, Kemba will be a Player of the Year candidate.
At the plate today, the Yankees didn't do too much. Johnny Damon's laser of a home run was really the only highlight. The other half of the split squad game, the one I wish was televised, was much more offensive minded. Both Austin Jackson and Jesus Montero hit home runs, the latter's being a grand slam. Every Yankee fan ought to keep a sharp eye on these two, as they are a huge part of the future of the New York Yankees.
In other ST news, Robinson Cano and Damaso Marte returned from the WBC with injuries that appear to be minor, but I'm cautious, as I am with any Yankee injury. Is the WBC to blame? Probably not wholly, but I still don't like the tournament for a variety of reasons. The first is that it simply takes away time players should have with their club teams. Second is that it's far too early for a playoff-like atmosphere. Third, I just don't like it when sports have to act as a veil for petty nationalism--this applies to the Olympics as well. If it's really all about the sport, why do the teams have to be national ones? If I had my way, I'd eliminate the WBC altogether. Despite that, though, I realize it's here to stay and is a good concept. Changes, however, should be made.
The timing is not one of those changes, despite the fact that it is poor. However, March is the lesser of a multitude of timing evils. Putting it mid-season would be moronic, as would putting it post-playoffs. What I would change is the teams. Instead of the teams being countries, they would be the winners of that country's league, meaning this year the US would've sent the Phillies to the WBC, Japan would've sent NPB's champion, and so on. I think this would give the world a much stronger idea of who baseball's best country is. Of course, there are pitfalls to this solution as well. Do we really think the Italian league champs would stand a chance against the Phillies? The teams also change year to year, what with free agent acquisitions and trades and what not, but whatever. It's still more entertaining to me than watching petty nationalism played out on a baseball field. This also may hurt the team's chances to mix younger players into the Spring Training fold due to the season-like atmosphere, but they could probably find time against the lesser teams. This idea isn't much better than the current WBC, but I think it's still an improvement. Either way, the WBC sucks.
UConn Basketball Six fuckin' overtimes. I stayed up for the whole damn thing and they lost. I was furious. I hate Syracuse. Jim Boehiem's alright but the players and the team itself, forget 'em. There is no one in college basketball I hate more than Eric Devendorf and his little eyebrow-pencil looking beard. Anyway, I don't think this hurts UConn's chances at a one or two seed in the Big Dance, but I'm still weary of the team. Losing Dyson really hurt and I think other teams have figured out how to attack Hasheem Thabeet: go right at him and try to out muscle him. UConn has the talent to make it all the way to the Final Four but they do have weaknesses, mostly three point shooting and free-throw shooting as well. If they are going to make a long tourney run, Thabeet will have to toughen up a bit, Adrien will have to regain his scoring form from early in the season, AJ Price will need to keep up the hot three point shooting, and Kemba Walker will have to be, well, Kemba walker. I've said it before and I'll say it again, in 2-3 years, Kemba will be a Player of the Year candidate.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Chase Wright Trade, the Bench, the Dodgers, More UConn Basketball
Alright first, I'll touch on the minor trade the Yankees made. They dealt the DFA'd Chase Wright to the Brew Crew for Minor Leaguer Eric Fryer. Fryer raked in the low A South Atlantic League, which is great...but he was old for the league so we'll see how he does moving up a level. I'd assume they're gonna start him for the "regular" A Tampa Yankees as a jump from the Sally League to the Eastern League may be too dramatic.
Fryer doesn't seem to be anything special but getting him for Wright--who is probably the better end of the deal--is better than getting nothing at all, which probably would've happened if Wright passed through waivers. I'll keep an eye on Fryer and Wright throughout the season, and I wish Chase the best of luck in Milwaukee.
The only thing left to look out for on the Yankee horizon is a bench infielder. River Avenue Blues raised the possibility of adding Mark Grudzielanek. I like this idea. Grudzielanek is a solid player who could probably start somewhere else. However, he said himself (via the RAB article) he wants to win, and the market has been D E A D silent on him. Adding him would mean taking someone off the 40 man roster--probably Dan Giese--which I would be fine with. The pitching depth is fine without Danny Boy and the bench is a more pressing issue now.
Next, there's the Dodgers and Manny. Manny rejected the team's one year, $25 million offer after rejecting a 2 year, $45 million dollar deal right after the season ended. At this point, no other market for Manny has surfaced. Brian Cashman, along with Jim Bowden and Omar Minaya, has said that his team will not be in the Manny sweepstakes. That leaves only the Dodgers and the Giants. Albert Pujols wants the Cards to make a play for him, but I doubt that happens.
Basically, there are two things the Dodgers can do: move on or make another offer. What would I do if I were Ned Coletti and company? I'd move on. There are other corner outfield options--Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu--and that money could also be used to bring in another player or two, such as Randy Wolff or maybe even Orlando Hudson, relegating Blake DeWitt to the bench.
By my calculations, Manny will be worth 2.61 Wins Above Replacement in 2009--his -15 defensive projection from CHONE really kills him. Adam Dunn projects to be worth 2 WAR and Orlando Hudson projects to be worth 3.09 WAR. Added together, Dunn and Hudson project to be worth 5.09 WAR, 2.48 more WAR than Manny alone. So, two heads seem to be better than one here, even if the one is one of the best hitters ever. There is also the price issue. Manny will cost anywhere from 20-25 million a year. Right now, the market is so low on Dunn and Hudson that the Dodgers could probably get them both for 10-20 million combined.
Onto UConn basketball. They're the number one team in the land. Woo! I know that doesn't mean much in early February, but UConn is really clicking. They have upcoming tests against Michigan and Syracuse, and the latter will be very tough. Regardless, the Huskies are looking absolutely fantastic and look poised to make a long run.
Sorry for the lack of posts. The semester's just started so I'm still getting into the academic swing of things and as we all know, baseball news is in an incredible lull. Hopefully more will come when Spring Training starts. Anyway, have a good one guys.
-Matt
Fryer doesn't seem to be anything special but getting him for Wright--who is probably the better end of the deal--is better than getting nothing at all, which probably would've happened if Wright passed through waivers. I'll keep an eye on Fryer and Wright throughout the season, and I wish Chase the best of luck in Milwaukee.
The only thing left to look out for on the Yankee horizon is a bench infielder. River Avenue Blues raised the possibility of adding Mark Grudzielanek. I like this idea. Grudzielanek is a solid player who could probably start somewhere else. However, he said himself (via the RAB article) he wants to win, and the market has been D E A D silent on him. Adding him would mean taking someone off the 40 man roster--probably Dan Giese--which I would be fine with. The pitching depth is fine without Danny Boy and the bench is a more pressing issue now.
Next, there's the Dodgers and Manny. Manny rejected the team's one year, $25 million offer after rejecting a 2 year, $45 million dollar deal right after the season ended. At this point, no other market for Manny has surfaced. Brian Cashman, along with Jim Bowden and Omar Minaya, has said that his team will not be in the Manny sweepstakes. That leaves only the Dodgers and the Giants. Albert Pujols wants the Cards to make a play for him, but I doubt that happens.
Basically, there are two things the Dodgers can do: move on or make another offer. What would I do if I were Ned Coletti and company? I'd move on. There are other corner outfield options--Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu--and that money could also be used to bring in another player or two, such as Randy Wolff or maybe even Orlando Hudson, relegating Blake DeWitt to the bench.
By my calculations, Manny will be worth 2.61 Wins Above Replacement in 2009--his -15 defensive projection from CHONE really kills him. Adam Dunn projects to be worth 2 WAR and Orlando Hudson projects to be worth 3.09 WAR. Added together, Dunn and Hudson project to be worth 5.09 WAR, 2.48 more WAR than Manny alone. So, two heads seem to be better than one here, even if the one is one of the best hitters ever. There is also the price issue. Manny will cost anywhere from 20-25 million a year. Right now, the market is so low on Dunn and Hudson that the Dodgers could probably get them both for 10-20 million combined.
Onto UConn basketball. They're the number one team in the land. Woo! I know that doesn't mean much in early February, but UConn is really clicking. They have upcoming tests against Michigan and Syracuse, and the latter will be very tough. Regardless, the Huskies are looking absolutely fantastic and look poised to make a long run.
Sorry for the lack of posts. The semester's just started so I'm still getting into the academic swing of things and as we all know, baseball news is in an incredible lull. Hopefully more will come when Spring Training starts. Anyway, have a good one guys.
-Matt
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Thoughts on a Few Things
With the Yankees seemingly done dealing for the Winter (yeah, right), I'll turn my attention to other things around the sports world for commentary.
The Trouble with Torre
First, there's this Joe Torre mess. If anything, it looks as if his book has tarnished him more than it has tarnished the Yankees. Everyone already knew that baseball clubhouses were a mess and that the Yankees were no exception. However, before this, it seemed that everyone thought Joe Torre was a trustworthy, respectable guy. Chances are, the opinion of most has swayed on this. As a Yankee fan who grew up in the "Dynasty Years," I will always have a softer spot for Joe Torre because he was the manager during the four Yankee world titles. I'm not gonna sit here and say, though, it was all because of him. The Yanks were a playoff team in '95 and were rolling at a .619 clip before the strike in 1994. Joe Torre stepped into the right place at the right time and took the team to the promised land. Now, I also can't say that just anyone could've managed those teams, but I do think Torre gets too much credit for the four WS wins and not enough blame for the two WS losses.
What troubles me most about this is the timing. If Torre wanted to release this book after his tenure with the Dodgers was over, fine. He'd be out of baseball and really wouldn't have anything to lose. By releasing it now, though, and raising all sorts of questions about his trustworthiness, you've gotta wonder what the players for the LA Dodgers are thinking. Torre went into LA with a reputation for being the strong, silent type the players could trust. Now, it doesn't seem that way. If I'm a young player on the Dodgers, I'm a little worried right now about how much I can trust Joe Torre. And if I'm a high paid veteran--Juan Pierre--I'm definitely going to be worried about whether or not I'm gonna be the next guy thrown under the bus.
The Super Bowl
This Super Bowl is a giant "meh" in my eyes. Last year, my Giants were in it and we all know how that turned out. I'd never been more excited for a football game in my life. Now, though, I don't even have a team to root against. At least if the Eagles had made it, I could've rooted hard for them to fall for the Steelers. Now, I don't really care who wins. If the Cardinals win, good for them. They came out of no where and did a great job. They also share a mascot with my high school so that factors in. If the Steelers win, that's cool, too. I like Mike Tomlin and I think the Rooneys are a pretty classy family. I'll be at my girlfriend's house for the game and to be honest, I'll probably be more interested in the fried zucchini and buffalo chicken dip she and I are making than in the game. But for shits and giggles, here's my prediction: Arizona 24 Pittsburgh 23. Arizona wins it on a late fade route from Warner to Fitzgerald--shades of Manning to Burres last year.
UConn Basketball
As a UConn student, I love how well the basketball team is playing right now. Before the season started, I thought they had a chance to make a serious run at the National Championship, and now I believe that even more. Jeff Adrien is playing his usual beastly basketball, AJ Price is shooting lights out from three point land, and Jerome Dyson is a fucking walking highlight reel. Hasheem Thabeet is once again dominating on the defensive end and on the glass, but I think his offense needs to see a little more aggression, especially if he's going to make it at the next level. Too many times I've seen him go up for a lay in instead of jamming it home like he should. His hands are still a little rough, too and he has a tendency to forget how tall he is. There are times when he plays like he's 6'3" instead of 7'3." However, I'd obviously like to have him instead of not. Lastly, I'll touch on freshman Kemba Walker. He is a damn exciting player and in two to three years, he will be a National Player of the Year candidate. Book it. GO HUSKIES.
The Trouble with Torre
First, there's this Joe Torre mess. If anything, it looks as if his book has tarnished him more than it has tarnished the Yankees. Everyone already knew that baseball clubhouses were a mess and that the Yankees were no exception. However, before this, it seemed that everyone thought Joe Torre was a trustworthy, respectable guy. Chances are, the opinion of most has swayed on this. As a Yankee fan who grew up in the "Dynasty Years," I will always have a softer spot for Joe Torre because he was the manager during the four Yankee world titles. I'm not gonna sit here and say, though, it was all because of him. The Yanks were a playoff team in '95 and were rolling at a .619 clip before the strike in 1994. Joe Torre stepped into the right place at the right time and took the team to the promised land. Now, I also can't say that just anyone could've managed those teams, but I do think Torre gets too much credit for the four WS wins and not enough blame for the two WS losses.
What troubles me most about this is the timing. If Torre wanted to release this book after his tenure with the Dodgers was over, fine. He'd be out of baseball and really wouldn't have anything to lose. By releasing it now, though, and raising all sorts of questions about his trustworthiness, you've gotta wonder what the players for the LA Dodgers are thinking. Torre went into LA with a reputation for being the strong, silent type the players could trust. Now, it doesn't seem that way. If I'm a young player on the Dodgers, I'm a little worried right now about how much I can trust Joe Torre. And if I'm a high paid veteran--Juan Pierre--I'm definitely going to be worried about whether or not I'm gonna be the next guy thrown under the bus.
The Super Bowl
This Super Bowl is a giant "meh" in my eyes. Last year, my Giants were in it and we all know how that turned out. I'd never been more excited for a football game in my life. Now, though, I don't even have a team to root against. At least if the Eagles had made it, I could've rooted hard for them to fall for the Steelers. Now, I don't really care who wins. If the Cardinals win, good for them. They came out of no where and did a great job. They also share a mascot with my high school so that factors in. If the Steelers win, that's cool, too. I like Mike Tomlin and I think the Rooneys are a pretty classy family. I'll be at my girlfriend's house for the game and to be honest, I'll probably be more interested in the fried zucchini and buffalo chicken dip she and I are making than in the game. But for shits and giggles, here's my prediction: Arizona 24 Pittsburgh 23. Arizona wins it on a late fade route from Warner to Fitzgerald--shades of Manning to Burres last year.
UConn Basketball
As a UConn student, I love how well the basketball team is playing right now. Before the season started, I thought they had a chance to make a serious run at the National Championship, and now I believe that even more. Jeff Adrien is playing his usual beastly basketball, AJ Price is shooting lights out from three point land, and Jerome Dyson is a fucking walking highlight reel. Hasheem Thabeet is once again dominating on the defensive end and on the glass, but I think his offense needs to see a little more aggression, especially if he's going to make it at the next level. Too many times I've seen him go up for a lay in instead of jamming it home like he should. His hands are still a little rough, too and he has a tendency to forget how tall he is. There are times when he plays like he's 6'3" instead of 7'3." However, I'd obviously like to have him instead of not. Lastly, I'll touch on freshman Kemba Walker. He is a damn exciting player and in two to three years, he will be a National Player of the Year candidate. Book it. GO HUSKIES.
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