Pages

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Twins - Tigers: Let's get this party started




Maybe a poor choice of words. For the Tigers, maybe it should be "let's get Cabrera sober".

What was this jackass thinking? His team is involved in a down-to-the-wire pennant race with the Twins--and by being involved I mean gagging up a lead the way a cat gags up a fur ball--and this guys is carousing with his buddies on the White Sox until after 2 a.m.

With an alcohol reading three times the legal limit at 6 a.m. it would be amazing if dude sobered up entirely by game time that evening. AYFKM??

If I were a Tigers fan or Jim Leyland, he would sit tonight. I would rather lose without him than win with him at this point. His shenanigans helps explain his late individual late-season slump which has contributed to his teams slump. Put someone else in.

One good thing that may come after tonight is the Twinkees may get the respect and recognition they deserve as the best run franchise at this point.

They CONSISTENTLY get the most out of the least in terms of payroll resources.
They play the game right fundamentally and can play small ball or power ball.
They lose key guys for extended stretches (like Morneau this year) and keep on winning.

Maybe they need some Wall Street financial writer to fall in love with them or their GM and write a book about how they do it in order to get the respect they deserve. But knowing the way this organization operates, they'll probably just win tonight and let the results speak for them.

A very old school approach that works. HOW ABOUT THAT!!!!

8 comments:

  1. About the top suburban 2010 baseball players:
    -Jordan Coffey is a 2009.
    -Andrew Arenson batted .040 on Stacey King's summer baseball team, his final at bat to hits ratio was around 2 for 49. Not a top hitter or player, size is decieving..

    ReplyDelete
  2. I appreciate your taking the time to comment, HOWEVER:

    1) You should put your name to your work, anonymous is no way to go through life.

    2) Jordan Coffey is currently QB Batavia's football team to my knowledge. I don't see why he would not play in 2010 for the baseball team.

    3) Arenson's size is what it is and as they say you can't teach size. If you mean it doesn't translate into tangible results, time will tell. That size will get him a long , hard look as both a LHP and as a hitter unless those stats repeat in the HS season.

    I don't like the T-L, B-R combo for a hitter, but maybe his future is on the bump. Probably needs more gas there, but someone will think they can get it out of him if he doesn't show it his senior year. If he's not in the upper 80's in 2010, I would be surprised.

    Sounds like someones momma who didn't like Andrew's momma was the team scorekeeper. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. -I am actally a player and played on Jordan Coffey's baseball team from the time I was 8-12.... the link shows he is going to Taylor University this year. http://www.taylor.edu/athletics/news/news_detail.shtml?inode=99736

    -You may be thinking of Jordan's brother, Jesse, a 2011 at batavia. I'm not sure if he plays football but he is the only Coffey at Batavia right now.

    -As far as Arenson... have you ever watched him play? 2 for 49 is a little more than a slump.. He didn't see the field during his junior year in high school because of lack of talent. I played on his summer team this year, as far as pitching. He didn't pitch 1 inning, he tops out at 76 on the hill. I was just pointing this out not to put down this kid but to make your rankings more accurate, real, and to keep you from soiling your website and to keep it a reliable source, all other information and blogs are very impressive I must say. I can give you my summer ball coach's number if you'd like to hear how "good" this kid is for yourself though. He stopped coming to our last few tournaments because he couldn't perform.

    P.S. Andrews mom to the best of my knowledge never made an appearance at any of the games...

    ReplyDelete
  4. You're right about Coffey, I was told last year he was a junior so I carried him over to 2010.

    Where did Beckmann, the 2B-SS (Sp?) end up? I know that one can rake but the size #'s may work against him. It's not fair but it is reality.

    The pros tend to think they can teach hitting. It's as if they think if they throw enough "potential" hitters against the wall by giving them 1000's of minor-league repetitions eventually they will find a guy where the production matches the potential they see.

    The productive guys in HS without major league size have to prove themselves over and over again and turn the "first impression-NO" into a YES. The guys with size they salivate over and form a "first impression-YES-YES" in their mind. Those guys have to FAIL repeatedly to turn that initial YES into a NO.

    It's stupid logic, but....

    Arenson I heard showed well at a showcase earlier this year that was attended by other top players.

    This may be a weak year for the 'burbs, other than Koziol from Brother Rice, I don't know of too many that are getting national buzz yet, but that could change.

    Who would you nominate that you do not see on the list and why?

    Have not seen Arenson personally yet, but I will at some point.

    The crack about stats, goes to their unreliability. It goes both ways, I've heard of too many "studs" with .500+ BA who couldn't hit their way out of a paper bag.

    If the 6-5 or 6-6 about Arensen is correct--another stat that is inherently unreliable due to the practice of "inching"--his future will be on the hill. That's almost too big a strike zone to defend.

    Why a lefty thrower doesn't hit lefty as well is beyond me and it just doesn't seem to work well for the hitter. I believe Ryan Ludwick (STL) is the only current major leaguer who makes it work (excluding switch-hitters).

    Thanks for the other kind words and the update on Mr. Coffey. What I did see from him as a pitcher, I liked. He had Bulldog written all over him, no pun intended.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I appologize if my explaination of Arenson came off as a negative, or bad mouthing. Not my intention at all, he is a great kid. I was just updating you so you may keep your list reliable.

    Alex Beckmann was a 2008 grad that is playing at NIU, last I heard he was doing well. He is a little guy too, reminds me of a Dustin Pedroia. Big guys make the majors so thats what they look for but its a shame when a great little guy is overlooked and his dream is shattered when he could've made it in the end.

    A 2010 I'd recommend is Kevin Borst from St. Charles North. I used to play with him a couple years ago. I haven't see him play but I hear he has a mid to upper 80's fastball and is a pretty solid hitter. He may be a good player to go take a look at. Commited to Heartland Community College. I can't think of anyone else right now but if I do i'll let you know.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Not a problem, I appreciate the updates. That's how I get some of the info on guys like Arensen, from other sources. I can't possibly see them all.

    I do remember hearing about Beckmann and I like the comparison to a Pedroia. Those guys make it but like an Eckstein or a Pedroia the street is never as well paved ahead of them as it is for the guys who look better coming off the team bus.

    SCN is right in my backyard so I can get a direct look at those guys frequently, plus they have a really good yard.

    ReplyDelete
  7. As another player and good friend of arenson, i can tell you that the other anonymous poster is full of crap. Sure he struggled at the plate, but if you dont recall, his last 2 tournaments with the A's, he hit the ball just as hard as anyone else out there. And the scorekeeper was in fact the mom of the back up 1st baseman...food for thought. I think he's hitting around .400 right now FYI

    ReplyDelete
  8. You're preaching to the choir Anonymous II. I stand by my synopsis of Andrew as a ballplayer and I have seen very positive offensive numbers posted this year, when it really counts.

    Fortunately, travel baseball is not taken as seriously as in basketball where in some areas it is above HS sports in rank and credibility amongst players and college coaches.

    I hope that day never comes. Sorry, separate rant.

    ReplyDelete