Proceeds from the ads below will be donated to the
Bob Wuesthoff scholarship fund.
Saturday, July 31, 2004 |
Reaction Around The Blogosphere
We'll start with ever-trenchant Dodger Blues, who makes some damn fine points here:
Leone For Third has a comprehensive look at all significant trades that's worth reading.
[B]eyond Finley, the Dodgers' additions stand at Brad Penny, Hee Seop Choi, Bret Mayne, and some minor leaguers. Their losses: Paul Lo Duca, Guillermo Mota, Dave Roberts, Tom Martin, and Juan Encarnacion. People can talk all they want about Lo Duca being a poor second-half hitter and Roberts being nothing more than legs, but there's no way in hell that the Dodgers are better today than they were yesterday morning. They picked up a guy who plays once every five days (Penny), another guy who's nothing more than a platoon player (Choi, if you go by his .194 average against lefties), and a 39-year-old outfielder they didn't need (Finley) who figures to fight with Milton Bradley over centerfield. They give up a hard-nosed catcher who's loved by his teammates and his city, a hard-nosed outfielder who's leading the league in stolen base percentage, a powerful set-up man for Gagne, and a good defensive outfielder who's got some pop. It just doesn't sit right. In fact, it couldn't be any more wrong.Meantime, in Giantdom, El Lefty Malo (who I've added a link to today) writesDePodesta has absolutely begun to put his stamp on the team, and it begins with a shake-up of a team in first-place. First place! Since when does a first-place team need a shake-up? It's absurd. For years the Dodgers have had talent, and it's gotten them nowhere. This year, the Dodgers finally have the C-word (chemistry), and DePodesta screws with it—in a HUGE way. That's just sick.
I think the Dodgers have screwed up. If indeed they have Dave Ross and maybe Brent Mayne at catcher, they have definitely made a mistake. ... Net effect? Probably downgrade. I bet the Padres are into this. If they win the division by a game, they should send Charles Johnson a nice box of chocolates.Update: Not the blogosphere, but Michael Ventre joins the ranks of those who think this move stinks:
I know what Paul DePodesta is feeling right now, because I’ve been to the racetrack. Many times I’ve put my hopes on a daily double. As you probably know, the daily double means you have to pick the winners of the first and second races. Just picking one will yield nothing. If you fail to win the daily double, it can take a lot of enjoyment from the rest of your day.Look, Michael, this wasn't a total loss, so suck it up. We got value for value. Will it get us to the postseason? Maybe. It's not clear.... After the trade deadline passed, all DePodesta could do was tear up his tickets.
Leone For Third has a comprehensive look at all significant trades that's worth reading.
More as it happens...
Comments:
"hard-nosed" means what? it means that objective markers contradict your point so that you pull out the infamous intangible.
mattkew
mattkew
# posted by 
: 7/31/2004 06:53:00 PM
: 7/31/2004 06:53:00 PM
Yeah, I glean the pained fan there. But you've gotta give him props for the lefty/righty platoon on Hee Seop.
Re: Platooning Hee Seop...
If that's the way the Dodgers go, then they can put Green on 1st against lefties and throw out an outfield of Finley/Werth/Bradley. Is that so bad an off-day lineup?
And Penny is more than "a guy who plays once every five days," he can also be a guy who pitches twice in a five game series.
At first I didn't like this trade for the Dodgers, but it's growing on me.
Patrick Meighan
Venice, CA
If that's the way the Dodgers go, then they can put Green on 1st against lefties and throw out an outfield of Finley/Werth/Bradley. Is that so bad an off-day lineup?
And Penny is more than "a guy who plays once every five days," he can also be a guy who pitches twice in a five game series.
At first I didn't like this trade for the Dodgers, but it's growing on me.
Patrick Meighan
Venice, CA
# posted by : 7/31/2004 07:08:00 PM
: 7/31/2004 07:08:00 PM
I'm not sure if the trade is good or bad (Joe Morgan hates it, so I'm predisposed to like it). But what I find interesting is that DePo didn't think the team, as currently constructed, was worth going with and saying, "let it ride."
And I think he was probably right. The teams in the NL West were all, as I see it, evenly uninteresting. The Giants went on a tear and then fell back into reality; the Dodgers are on a tear now, but would it have really continued? I wouldn't have bet on it -- and neither did DePo.
Or to put it another way, he didn't let the standings in late July and one hot streak dissuade him from his beliefs that the Dodgers needed serious work if they were going to contend.
I'm not sure if it's going to work, but damn if I don't admire him for being bold.
-Jason (Idiots Write About Sports)
And I think he was probably right. The teams in the NL West were all, as I see it, evenly uninteresting. The Giants went on a tear and then fell back into reality; the Dodgers are on a tear now, but would it have really continued? I wouldn't have bet on it -- and neither did DePo.
Or to put it another way, he didn't let the standings in late July and one hot streak dissuade him from his beliefs that the Dodgers needed serious work if they were going to contend.
I'm not sure if it's going to work, but damn if I don't admire him for being bold.
-Jason (Idiots Write About Sports)
Newer› ‹Older
 |
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.