Wednesday, August 04, 2010

Watching the Waiver Wire...and Hollywood Squares


Now we go from the July 31st trading deadline watch to the August 31st waiver deadline watch. Some interesting names could end up on the wire. Recent attention has focused on Adam Dunn and the Giants have been mentioned on the short list of teams that may have interest. The Rockies may employ the old "Charlie Weaver to block" strategy and he stays with the Nats.


FOR THOSE OF US OLD ENOUGH: CLASSIC CHARLIE WEAVER-ISMS AT THE END OF THE POST.

The waiver process is interesting. Teams can place a player on waivers and other teams have a chance to claim that players. First priority goes to teams in the same league, in reverse order of record. Then the other leagues teams get a shot, again in reverse order of record. A players stays on waivers for 48 hours and if multiple teams submit claims, the award goes to the team that meets the order of priority conditions. Teams with the worst record in the same league would win the claim, if there are no same league claims, he's awarded to the team with the worst record in the other league.

Teams use this to assess late-season interest in a player for a possible deal. Since the waiving team is limited to bargain exclusively with the claiming team, the price is generally lower. Many times players are dealt for the ever popular PTBNL or Player to be Named Later. This is generally done because the player the other team wants will not clear waivers or otherwise restricted in some manner.

If nobody claims the player, he can be pulled back or released. If he's claimed, the team can still pull him back and work out a trade with the claiming team. If no deal is consummated he can be pulled back and kept by the original team.

The risk to the claiming team is that other team can release a large-salaried player (salary dump) to the claiming team and get nothing back in return. The "addition by subtraction strategy".

Given those parameters, in addition to bats like Adam Dunn or Toronto's Jose Bautista, there are some players the Giants could pick up that would help in a playoff drive.

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman recently published his list of players most likely to hit the wire and a quick scan includes some interesting names.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jon_heyman/08/02/waivers.trades/index.html?xid=si_topstories

Barry Zito was one such name. Heyman cites another executive as saying the Giants would not deal any of their starters (good move) "unless they were lucky enough for someone to take Zito."


ZITO FOR WELLS? BOTH SIGNED 7 YR/ $126M ALBATROSS DEALS??? HMMMM....

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2010-05-06-zito-wells-cover_N.htm


Wells is due to make $10.5M more than Zito from 2011-2014 according the USA Today. He might be able to hold down CF until 1st rounder Gary Brown develops, then maybe move him to one of the corner spots that need a power bat.

WOW!! Wouldn't that be the Greater Fool Theory on steroids?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_fool_theory

The greater fool theory (sometimes the bigger fool theory, also called survivor investing) is the belief held by one who makes a questionable investment, with the assumption that they will be able to sell it later to "a bigger fool"; in other words, buying something not because you believe that it is worth the price, but rather because you believe that you will be able to sell it to someone else for an even better price.[1]

Perhaps it would, but the Heyman list is littered by the foolish maneuvers of other MLB executives. Maybe it's comforting to occasionally see that there are other GM's in the league making similar bad moves that hamstring their organizations.

Take the Cubs, PLEASE!!!.

PRESS HERE:
http://instantrimshot.com/index.php?sound=rimshot&play=true

Carlos Zambrano is on the list. And he appears to be in need of a change of scenery. You could get a potential top of the rotation pitcher for Zito in a near swap of bad salaries. Zambrano would have to be on his best behavior for this to pan out, but who knows?


Aramis Ramirez would be a decent middle of the order pick up, but unfortunately we can't DH him and do not have a need at 3B or 1B.

Cubs OF Kosuke Fukudome is also on the list, so maybe Cubs GM Jim Hendry is actually the dumbest GM in baseball. I don't feel so bad now.

The Blue Jays CF Vernon Wells could be an intriguing match. He looks like he's coming back to his prior form, albeit not all the way back to the form that allowed him to command a $20+M salary for the next three years. But the G-men are in similar trouble with Zito's deal which makes this an intriguing deal. You're giving up pitching for hitting, but management must feel they can overcome the loss of Zito as an innings eater--if no longer an ace-- which is the sentiment that comes through if the unnamed team executive quotes are given any credence.



The only other names that caught my eye were Brewers RHP David Bush and the Indians 1B Travis Haffner. Haffner would put the Giants in a similar position as A-Ram, a man without a regular position with the Giants. I know Haffner's productivity has plummeted recently but I still have the image of him taking a FB from Mark Buerhle, I think, right in the face and he just picked it up and flipped it back. AWESOME.


OK, enough baseball, on to the laughs.

----
THE HOLLYWOOD SQUARES:


THE CHARLIE WEAVER FILE:

http://www.classicsquares.com/weaversquares.html



-----
THE PAUL LYNDE FILES ARE JUST AS HILARIOUS:


http://www.classicsquares.com/lyndesquares.html

http://www.classicsquares.com/morelynde.html


http://www.classicsquares.com/morelyndeii.html
-----

Charley Weaver had the distinction of being the only one of the show's permanent regulars...to be, in fact a character. He was played by Cliff Arquette, the unlikely patriarch of an acting family. (He's the father of Lewis and--believe it or not--grandfather of Rosanna, Patricia and David.) But this was a character that linked the Squares to television's earliest days. Arquette played his Charley Weaver character as a regular on The Dennis Day Show, The Tonight Show (during the Jack Paar years), and the 1962 incarnation of The Roy Rogers/Dale Evans Show. He also popped up in that character in guest shots on shows ranging from Dragnet to The Andy Williams Show. If the Squares were a party, Charley would be the grandfather your parents left to watch after you...then when they left, he might get a couple of drinks in him and tell you every dirty joke he's ever heard.

Arquette was born in Toledo, Ohio in December 1905, but it's the town of Mount Ida, Arkansas that owes its place in American culture to him. That's because his Weaver character developed as a man who was always reading letters from his "Mount Idy Mama." Arquette later said he was inspired by a friend of his mother, who wrote letters from Mount Idy which were read to the whole family. So he often read those in character to Jack Paar or Dennis Day. Arquette also appeared in numerous old-time radio programs, including Fibber McGee & Molly, Lum and Abner and Point Sublime, a 1946 small-town comedy that co-starred Mel Blanc. As "Charley Weaver," Arquette starred in Dave and Charley (1952) as well as a 1955 NBC summer show called Do It Yourself, a combination comedy/how to program that looks like an early forerunner to the fictitious "Tool Time with Tim Taylor" on Home Improvement.

During his later years Arquette, a Civil War buff, owned a Civil War museum in Gettysburg. He also lent his character's name and face to endorsements of garden tools and charcoal briquettes.

Weaver/Arquette was on The Hollywood Squares when it debuted on NBC in October 1966. Except for a nine-month leave of absence in 1973, he stayed on the show until his death in September 1974.

But they haven't entirely forgotten him in Mount Ida, where they still hold a yearly celebration that, until 2000, was called"Charley Weaver Day."

Peter Marshall: Which of your five senses tends to diminish as you get older?
Charley Weaver: My sense of decency.

Peter Marshall: Charley, you've just decided to grow strawberries. Are you going to get any during your first year?
Weaver: Of course not, Peter. I'm too busy growing strawberries!

Peter Marshall: According to a recent article in the Miami Herald, at age 78, is Groucho Marx still interested in sex?
Charley Weaver: Yes, but he's forgotten the secret word.

Peter Marshall: Charley, an 87-year-old doctor named Quick invented something that's named for him. What is it?
Charley Weaver: 87 years old? I'd say the quickie!

Peter Marshall: Charley, true or false: every time you sneeze, your heart stops.
Charley Weaver: Out to the home, there's a few people that, whenever they sneeze, their hearts stop!

Peter Marshall: According to Billy Graham, can you get anything you've always wanted in Heaven, if you didn't get it on Earth?
Charley Weaver: Yes, but there's an extra charge for the whitewalls.

Peter Marshall: Is there a weight limit for bags on airline flights in this country?
Charley Weaver: If she can fit under the seat, she can fly.

Peter Marshall: According to Today's Health, what do most dentists say you should do with your dentures before going to bed?
Charley Weaver: Out to the home, we throw them all into the center of the room and have a swap party...

Peter Marshall: According to Ann Landers, is their anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of people?
Charley Weaver: It got me out of the army!

Peter Marshall: Charley, what do you call a pig that weighs more than 150 pounds?
Charley Weaver: A divorcee.

Peter Marshall: Charles, how many balls would you expect to find on a billiard table?
Charley Weaver: How many guys are playing? (Weaver and audience laughing) Now you're doing it, that's more like it.

Peter Marshall: What famous story begins with the discovery of magic beans?
Charley Weaver: Inherit the Wind.

Peter Marshall: True or false -- when the swallows return to Capistrano, they are probably coming from Argentina.
Charley Weaver: That's true, and not only did they ruin my car, they blew up my trailer!

Peter Marshall: Does Pat Nixon think her husband is fun?
Charley Weaver: Yes, she says he's full of it.

Peter Marshall: Do rosey cheeks always mean good health?
Charley Weaver: Not if you're sitting on a radiator!

Peter Marshall: In a recent TV Guide interview, Paul Lynde said that he has been cursed with something all his life. What?
Charley Weaver: Four letter words! (correct answer: shyness)

Peter Marshall: Was there anything going on between Christopher Columbus and Queen Isabella?
Charley Weaver: Yes, and Columbus later found out that the world was round and she was flat!

Peter Marshall: Shakespeare wrote 154 of them. What are they?
Charley Weaver: Checks to Rose Marie for services rendered.

Peter Marshall: What makes water hard?
Charley Weaver: Winter.

Peter Marshall: You are a senior citizen and during the night while you are asleep, your heart beats 50 times per minute. Is there something wrong with you?
Charley Weaver: Well, let's put it this way. Could you ask me Friday's questions today?

Peter Marshall: True or false -- rumors circulate in business offices more than any place else.
Charley Weaver: That's false, Peter, and we're certainly going to miss you around here!

Peter Marshall: True or false -- drinking can make you hard of hearing.
Charley Weaver: What?

Peter Marshall: Is it possible for you to make a dog laugh?
Charley Weaver: Well, I tried to housebreak a dog once and he just laughed and laughed.

Peter Marshall: When you go shopping, is there any difference between irregulars and seconds?
Charley Weaver: Out at the home, when I have seconds I get irregular.

Peter Marshall: True or false -- as you get older, your skin becomes more transparent.
Charley Weaver: Out at the home in the x-ray room, they just hold us up to a light bulb.

Peter Marshall: True or false -- Lawrence Welk has a fourth grade education.
Charley Weaver: That's why he says, "And a one and a two..."

(at the end of a show, when Peter Marshall is plugging various appearances by the other stars)
Charley Weaver: ...And I will be appearing in Wasserman, Ohio, with my trained pet hamster!

Peter Marshall: Every night before he went to bed, George Washington would always put his false teeth into something. What?
Charley Weaver: Martha!

Peter Marshall: According to the nursery rhyme, "There was an old woman who lived in a shoe. She had so many children she didn't know what to do". What did she give her children to eat?
Charley Weaver: She lived in a shoe? Filet of sole!

Peter Marshall: Tommy Smothers and President George Washington share a common outstanding physical trait that's very noticeable and unique. What is it?
Charley Weaver: They both have wooden teeth.

Peter Marshall: In the movie "Camelot", Sir Lancelot is called on to perform a miracle. What is the miracle?
Charley Weaver: The miracle is to make the movie a hit.

Peter Marshall: Arthur Hailey had a very successful movie and novel called "Hotel". He has a new best seller about another stopover point. What is it called?
Charley Weaver: Service Station.

Peter Marshall: Which is higher, a vice admiral or a rear admiral?
Charley Weaver: That depends on who drinks the most.

Peter Marshall: Who said, "Richard Nixon was the most difficult man I ever had
to paint"?
Charlie Weaver: Earl Scheib.

----


HARD TO BELIEVE BUT SOME OF THESE DID NOT MAKE THE CUT IN 1971

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Giants Top Minor League Prospects

  • 1. Joey Bart 6-2, 215 C Power arm and a power bat, playing a premium defensive position. Good catch and throw skills.
  • 2. Heliot Ramos 6-2, 185 OF Potential high-ceiling player the Giants have been looking for. Great bat speed, early returns were impressive.
  • 3. Chris Shaw 6-3. 230 1B Lefty power bat, limited defensively to 1B, Matt Adams comp?
  • 4. Tyler Beede 6-4, 215 RHP from Vanderbilt projects as top of the rotation starter when he works out his command/control issues. When he misses, he misses by a bunch.
  • 5. Stephen Duggar 6-1, 170 CF Another toolsy, under-achieving OF in the Gary Brown mold, hoping for better results.
  • 6. Sandro Fabian 6-0, 180 OF Dominican signee from 2014, shows some pop in his bat. Below average arm and lack of speed should push him towards LF.
  • 7. Aramis Garcia 6-2, 220 C from Florida INTL projects as a good bat behind the dish with enough defensive skill to play there long-term
  • 8. Heath Quinn 6-2, 190 OF Strong hitter, makes contact with improving approach at the plate. Returns from hamate bone injury.
  • 9. Garrett Williams 6-1, 205 LHP Former Oklahoma standout, Giants prototype, low-ceiling, high-floor prospect.
  • 10. Shaun Anderson 6-4, 225 RHP Large frame, 3.36 K/BB rate. Can start or relieve
  • 11. Jacob Gonzalez 6-3, 190 3B Good pedigree, impressive bat for HS prospect.
  • 12. Seth Corry 6-2 195 LHP Highly regard HS pick. Was mentioned as possible chip in high profile trades.
  • 13. C.J. Hinojosa 5-10, 175 SS Scrappy IF prospect in the mold of Kelby Tomlinson, just gets it done.
  • 14. Garett Cave 6-4, 200 RHP He misses a lot of bats and at times, the plate. 13 K/9 an 5 B/9. Wild thing.

2019 MLB Draft - Top HS Draft Prospects

  • 1. Bobby Witt, Jr. 6-1,185 SS Colleyville Heritage HS (TX) Oklahoma commit. Outstanding defensive SS who can hit. 6.4 speed in 60 yd. Touched 97 on mound. Son of former major leaguer. Five tool potential.
  • 2. Riley Greene 6-2, 190 OF Haggerty HS (FL) Florida commit.Best HS hitting prospect. LH bat with good eye, plate discipline and developing power.
  • 3. C.J. Abrams 6-2, 180 SS Blessed Trinity HS (GA) High-ceiling athlete. 70 speed with plus arm. Hitting needs to develop as he matures. Alabama commit.
  • 4. Reece Hinds 6-4, 210 SS Niceville HS (FL) Power bat, committed to LSU. Plus arm, solid enough bat to move to 3B down the road. 98MPH arm.
  • 5. Daniel Espino 6-3, 200 RHP Georgia Premier Academy (GA) LSU commit. Touches 98 on FB with wipe out SL.

2019 MLB Draft - Top College Draft Prospects

  • 1. Adley Rutschman C Oregon State Plus defender with great arm. Excellent receiver plus a switch hitter with some pop in the bat.
  • 2. Shea Langliers C Baylor Excelent throw and catch skills with good pop time. Quick bat, uses all fields approach with some pop.
  • 3. Zack Thompson 6-2 LHP Kentucky Missed time with an elbow issue. FB up to 95 with plenty of secondary stuff.
  • 4. Matt Wallner 6-5 OF Southern Miss Run producing bat plus mid to upper 90's FB closer. Power bat from the left side, athletic for size.
  • 5. Nick Lodolo LHP TCU Tall LHP, 95MPH FB and solid breaking stuff.