Tuesday, January 16, 2007 |
Pickoff Moves
Today's Birthdays
Alfredo Amezaga ANA b. 1978, played 2002-2004. His is a story of the gradual improvement in Angels' player development over the last decade. A 13th-round pick in the 1999 draft, Amezaga was actually considered one of the Angels' better prospects for a time; he went on a tear at low-A Boise, hitting .322 in the Northwest League, but fell back to earth at Lake Elsinore. Opening 2001, the Angels dubbed him the shortstop of the future, but another player, claimed off waivers from the Boston Red Sox — David Eckstein — moved from second to short, and grabbed the starting job himself.
Spending three years bouncing up and down between AAA Salt Lake and the majors, the Angels let the all-glove, no-hit infielder go at the end of 2004 to make room for starter Paul Byrd. After stints in the Pittsburgh and Colorado minors, he unbelievably became the Marlins' starting centerfielder toward the end of the 2006 season, posting creditable numbers along the way. He's posting good numbers in winter ball, but it's unlikely he'll remain Florida's choice at center this year.
Jack McDowell ANA b. 1966, played 1998-1999, All-Star: 1991-1993. McDowell's career started with a bang, winning the 1993 AL Cy Young with the Chisox; it ended with the late 90's, Bill Bavasi-run Angels amid a flurry of injuries. (Trivia point for Jon Weisman: he's third all-time on the list of pitchers hailing from Stanford for most major league victories.)
McDowell joined the Angels during a transition period: Jarrod Washburn made his first appearance that year, with Ramon Ortiz and Scott Schoeneweis just over the horizon. The Angels used seven starting pitchers in 1998 (eight if you count swingman Allen Watson), each with 11 starts or more. Among them, only Washburn, Chuck Finley, and the short-lived Jason Dickson were home-grown. The balance, Omar Olivares, knuckleballer Steve Sparks, Ken Hill, and McDowell himself, were all late-career veterans in their early 30's. By 2002, all but Washburn, Finley, and Sparks would be out of baseball.
Rod Miller BRO b. 1940, played 1957
Bob Ramazzotti BRO b. 1917, played 1946, 1948-1949, d. 2000-02-15
Ferdie Schupp BRO b. 1891, played 1921, d. 1971-12-16
Grady Little Might Get Extended
Meh. The Dodgers could do worse, I suppose. In fact, I bet Jim Tracy will be available again... soon. And then, this:Stability should increase this season — although power might not. Making a trade for a slugger is becoming increasingly unlikely because few hitters are available, even for one of the Dodgers' starting pitchers.That's because nobody wants to trade for pitchers like Hendrickson...
Gary Sheffield, Classy As Ever
Another great Gary Sheffield moment from a new autobiography to be published this spring:Sheffield called Manager Joe Torre “an enigma” and recalled how, in 2004, his first season in with the Yankees, he grew infuriated that Torre had said he wished the team had signed the slugger Vladimir Guerrero.Shut. Up. Gary.During a meeting in Torre’s office before a May game in Baltimore, Sheffield told him: “I’m tired of hearing you talk about how much you love Guerrero. That disrespects me.”
Via BTF.
OT: Getting A Rise Out Of The Astronauts
And look what NASA pranksters put in the Apollo instruction book!
: 1/16/2007 01:05:00 PMI always respected McDowell for his efforts and desire to give everything he could to help the team. It was just unfortunate that his arm had fallen off before he was ready to hang up the spikes.
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