Friday, January 12, 2007 |
Pickoff Moves
Tardy: MLB Commits Suicide In Extra Innings, Or Is There A Silver Lining?
Maury Brown earlier in the week published a column on MLB in advanced negotiations to give DirecTV exclusive access to their Extra Innings package. I didn't think much of it at the time, my opinion being that (a) DirecTV has terrible market penetration in the urban areas they undoubtedly want most, (b) therefore they'll make some money up front but less money on an ongoing basis, since who wants to switch to DirecTV just for the EI package?But that said, there are problems with the current arrangement. In particular, last year Time-Warner Cable truncated its EI programming, preventing some baseball games from being aired when they conflicted with games on a similar package with hockey or basketball. Speculating that the reason for this is likely a shortage of satellite transponder slots, I wonder whether DirecTV, with a fleet of its own satellites, couldn't provide better, more consistent service. If that were part of the motivation, and not just another way to squeeze more money out of fans, it would be a little easier to get behind the idea. Just a thought.
Nick Adenhart Interview
Angels top pitching prospect Nick Adenhart has learned how to throw a curveball:"A lot of the healing process is the waiting," Adenhart said, showing his scar from the surgery and describing the procedure to the crowd. "You are just waiting for your body to heal. I was throwing again in five months, but I wasn't back to a mound for another seven."I noticed him doing that when I saw him pitching at Rancho in July last year. If he's changed his mechanics, you could have fooled me.In the process, Adenhart had the chance to realize his ability to become a complete pitcher.
He was able to build on his body, turning his 6-foot-2, 180-pound frame from high school into 6-3 1/2 and 205.
He took the opportunity to start from scratch to get his mechanics in order. He admitted working with a pitching coach to get his pitching package together.
"In high school, I was throwing across my body," Adenhart said. "My stepdad and I were going to work with my mechanics and then we figured we'd wait because I was about to cross over from high school to professional. But then it was too late."
The curve has become his out pitch - the one that he turns to when he is going for the strikeout. And in essence, it is the pitch that is moving him through the Angels' system and giving him a reputation across baseball.The article claims he's throwing 97 now, which is good."My curve is a good pitch," he said. "The Angels seem to like it. They rated it the best one in the organization. I like it a lot. I'm getting a lot of strikeouts with it. "
Dirtbags Ranked
The CSU Long Beach Dirtbags are ranked 30th nationally and fourth in the Big West by the various coaches polls, with evil enemy CSUF topping the conference, again. Meh. Gotta work on that recruiting, coach Weathers.Pointless A's Rumor: Danny Haren To The Mets For Lastings Milledge
We'll see about that. I'm unconvinced the Mets' system, as weak as it's been, is going to produce another player like Milledge, and given the state of their outfield, he'll be a much-needed part. On the other hand, Pedro and his eternally injured self...
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