Saturday, August 25, 2007 |
Pickoff Moves
Brad Penny, .500 Pitcher: Mets 5, Dodgers 2
Sure, Brad Penny has a 14-4 record including this loss, but what's interesting to me is that the Dodgers are exactly 14-14 when he starts. This, of course, says more about his offense than his ability, as he's lead the league in quality starts as a percentage, with 85%, and owns the most in the league in that regard (23). (On the other hand, he's always had a tough time at Shea, sporting a career 6.54 ERA there in its unfriendly confines.)I still blame Ned Colletti for the lousy offense, but then, maybe I should keep my mouth shut some, seeing as how the solution I championed, moving Andre Ethier up in the order, was met with a 1-for-5 game. Whatever his other virtues are, Ethier is not good with two outs (he made the last out of the game on a strikeout with Juan Pierre on third); he has a 2007 line of .223/.341/.366 when batting with two outs. That's kind of odd that he's so inert, because he does well on two strike counts (.237/.288/.395 sounds low but in fact it's much better than average, to the tune of a +145 sOPS+), so you can't say that pressure situations necessarily cause him to choke. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap and move on.
Let's Play Two: Tigers 9, Yankees 6
I was up late last night watching the end of this incredible, rain-delayed game, pushed to start at 11:00 EDT because of an even worse system pushing in today. They said during the broadcast that supposedly today's game was a day game, but it turns out it's scheduled for 7:05 EDT, so the players can at least get some sleep.I found myself listening to the fifth inning on the way home from yesterday's Jays/Angels game, and eventually turned on Extra Innings once I finished that game recap. The Tigers crowd was really into it, despite the late hour, and I had a hard time believing it myself when Carlos Guillen blasted a two-out, 1-and-2 count pitch off Sean Henn into the left-field bullpens for a walkoff three-run shot. It's the second time in a week he's worn the horns (Ryan Budde says hello), but with Mariano Rivera already used, Joe Torre didn't have a lot of choices.
Casey Kotchman Is Full Of Goo, And Other Roster Notes
- Those who find Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs fascinating will probably be intrigued by Casey Kotchman's path to wellness:
"We drilled [his finger] open and a lot of stuff came out," Kotchman said. "It was either that or it was going to throb all night. [Smith] is really good with power tools, you could say."
Kotchman reports being unable to grip a baseball hard enough to throw it; he may not even be able to return by Monday, as originally speculated. - Chone Figgins also will probably miss the series.
- Mike Napoli had another setback in his rehab, this time due to back spasms. He's at least another week away from returning, not good considering he'll need minor league at bats to get going.
- Brett Tomko is taking his DFA like a man:
"[The Dodgers] did what they felt they had to do," Tomko said. "I had things that nagged at me, but I'm not blaming anything or anybody. I just didn't get the job done. It's not like they're bringing in a chump."
At which point Wells, dressing in the next locker, said: "Wanna bet? I've been a chump of late."
Tomko continued: "I'm a big guy about accountability. I threw the ball. It's nobody's fault but my own. I'm more disappointed that I didn't do what they expected me to do."
Tech Review: MLB.com Gameday Plus Gameday Audio
I bought Gameday Plus Gameday Audio during the game last night because the Cubs/Snakes game was running late, and, well, wow. To be able to listen to the broadcasters wherever you are without an XM radio (the portability of which is rather dubious) is just tremendous. I have a Verizon Motorola V3m phone, and the audio comes out of the speakerphone. One criticism: in a noisy ballpark this is tough to listen to, so it would be helpful if they could get it to work through the headset. (Update: it does. Nifty!) One nice feature of this software is that you can close the phone up and the connection doesn't go away. Definitely worth the 20 bucks or so for a year's subscription.Update 2: One annoyance: you can't use the Gameday feature and Gameday Audio going simultaneously. Bummer.
Labels: dodgers, mets, recaps, tech, tigers, transactions, yankees
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