From Sportsnet.ca, an informative column from a guy who is sometimes too interested in rumours, about Eric Hinske changing agents and preferring not to hit second. A few interesting quotes from the GM, too. Thanks to Steve Z.
I'm surprised Gross and Bush (even though neither is on the 40-man) are not on the Spring Training Roster. I wonder why the #1 draft pick (Adams), and newly acquired minor leaguers (Arnold and Griffin) are given the invite by default, leaving other up-and-comers (like Gross) toiling at at the "minor league" complex, playing "B" games?
Gross struggled last year at AA. He needs to focus on putting together a good year this year. I am not sure if the Jays will start him at AA again, until he masters it, or if he will get to start the year at AAA.
Do you mean Homer Bush? He is long gone.
Do you mean Homer Bush? He is long gone.
Likely referring to 2002 second round pick David Bush. I'm surprised that he wouldn't show up at camp because I'd think he's more likely to be major league ready than Adams at this point. However, training camp does feature a lot of pitchers and there's only so many they can give innings to and still evaluate meaningfully. I think Arnold has 80 AA innings under his belt already so if he blows them away at training camp he might force his way onto the 25 man roster (though this is a longshot).
I think Gross was invited to camp last spring (I might be wrong) so it may just be a matter of getting the new guys their first spring training with the club. Gross is fairly certain to start at AA again. They'll use the opportunity to gauge what level of competition Arnold, Griffin, and Adams are ready for...Adams could conceivably make the AA team while Griffin will likely start there and Arnold probably goes to AAA.
I think Gross was invited to camp last spring (I might be wrong) so it may just be a matter of getting the new guys their first spring training with the club. Gross is fairly certain to start at AA again. They'll use the opportunity to gauge what level of competition Arnold, Griffin, and Adams are ready for...Adams could conceivably make the AA team while Griffin will likely start there and Arnold probably goes to AAA.
First rounders are often given an invite to ML spring training in their first spring with the club, sometimes in the contract and sometimes out of courtesy. Hence Adams this year, Griffin last year.
There are a lot of other very promising first-round picks who won't be with the big club -- it's probably negotiated when you sign -- and one surprise inclusion; Francisco Rosario must be going to learn about being a big-leaguer, as he won't be picking up any baseballs.
Jason Arnold's MLB.com diary wouldn't be nearly as good from the minor-league clubhouse. I hope he gets one inning right away and a couple more chances, even a start or two. When he does pitch, it will mean a lot more to him than to someone like Doc, who lobs it over the plate for a couple of starts, then turns it on gradually. But if they use him strictly in relief in Florida, don't be surprised. I know he's supposed to be a AA and AAA starter this year, but he could get an earlier call if Tam or Lopez disappoints.
Seems we're ignoring the stuff about Hinske's agent, which doesn't matter to most fans but is more important to the club than his height, weight and hometown. It affects the relationship between player and team, and can dramatically change the value of your asset. I think a lot of us frequently ignore data following the dollar signs, but hey, if the big guy is happy, we're all happy.
I also liked J.P.'s comment on the batting order.
"We have a lot of flexibility in our lineup," Ricciardi said. "We'll be moving our hitters around, from game to game, depending on the opposing pitcher and depending on who's hot and who's not."
He thinks an interchangeable lineup is an edge. I can't disagree, but that depends how you use it. I still want to know, if tomorrow was opening day, against a righty (shall we say Halladay faces Mussina, or better still, the Rocket?) what Tosca's batting order looks like. I bet the players do, too.
Not that Carlos has to tell us; it doesn't really matter at this point. There's a lot of innings in Florida between now and then, people strain rib cages and tweak hammys. I'm just curious. I daydream about Cat-Stewart-Delgado-Phelps-Hinske-Wells; it goes L-R and everything, then he can mix up the switch-hitter, the SS and the C at the bottom any way he likes, but Myers-Woodward-Hudson keeps the rotation going and neutralizes those LOOGYs. For J.P., that's just one option among many. For me, if they're all healthy, it's how I fill out the card March 31.
Jason Arnold's MLB.com diary wouldn't be nearly as good from the minor-league clubhouse. I hope he gets one inning right away and a couple more chances, even a start or two. When he does pitch, it will mean a lot more to him than to someone like Doc, who lobs it over the plate for a couple of starts, then turns it on gradually. But if they use him strictly in relief in Florida, don't be surprised. I know he's supposed to be a AA and AAA starter this year, but he could get an earlier call if Tam or Lopez disappoints.
Seems we're ignoring the stuff about Hinske's agent, which doesn't matter to most fans but is more important to the club than his height, weight and hometown. It affects the relationship between player and team, and can dramatically change the value of your asset. I think a lot of us frequently ignore data following the dollar signs, but hey, if the big guy is happy, we're all happy.
I also liked J.P.'s comment on the batting order.
"We have a lot of flexibility in our lineup," Ricciardi said. "We'll be moving our hitters around, from game to game, depending on the opposing pitcher and depending on who's hot and who's not."
He thinks an interchangeable lineup is an edge. I can't disagree, but that depends how you use it. I still want to know, if tomorrow was opening day, against a righty (shall we say Halladay faces Mussina, or better still, the Rocket?) what Tosca's batting order looks like. I bet the players do, too.
Not that Carlos has to tell us; it doesn't really matter at this point. There's a lot of innings in Florida between now and then, people strain rib cages and tweak hammys. I'm just curious. I daydream about Cat-Stewart-Delgado-Phelps-Hinske-Wells; it goes L-R and everything, then he can mix up the switch-hitter, the SS and the C at the bottom any way he likes, but Myers-Woodward-Hudson keeps the rotation going and neutralizes those LOOGYs. For J.P., that's just one option among many. For me, if they're all healthy, it's how I fill out the card March 31.
JP also said Stewart and Delgado are locks at 1 and 4 respectively in the order.
If an alternating R-L batting order is to take place it means that 2 righties are needed at 3 and 5 which means Hinske or Cat would bat 2nd and most likely the other one 6th. Cat 2 and Hinske 6 seems more logical than the other way around. Also, that would likely mean that Wells and Phelps would be 3-5.
For batting orders supposedly not making much of a difference we sure think about it a lot.
If an alternating R-L batting order is to take place it means that 2 righties are needed at 3 and 5 which means Hinske or Cat would bat 2nd and most likely the other one 6th. Cat 2 and Hinske 6 seems more logical than the other way around. Also, that would likely mean that Wells and Phelps would be 3-5.
For batting orders supposedly not making much of a difference we sure think about it a lot.
Batting order isn't vital, I think Bill James found that the difference between the best possible order and worst possible order is about 30 runs in a season (depending on the hitters involved of course). It would give a meaningful edge to a team in contention to have a proper batting order...winning and extra game or two could mean a lot.
The order is important somewhat for the manager and the players. Whether or not it's still practical, a player's spot in the lineup dictates their role and importance and the confidence the team has in him. More importantly from a player's perspective, where you hit determines things like RBI and run scoring opportunities. For instance, Hinske should easily drive in 100 runners if his 24 homers and 38 doubles move down to a spot behind Stewart, Catalanatto, and Delgado. That in turn affects his market value as RBIs are still largely taken into consideration by GMs and arbitrators alike.
The order is important somewhat for the manager and the players. Whether or not it's still practical, a player's spot in the lineup dictates their role and importance and the confidence the team has in him. More importantly from a player's perspective, where you hit determines things like RBI and run scoring opportunities. For instance, Hinske should easily drive in 100 runners if his 24 homers and 38 doubles move down to a spot behind Stewart, Catalanatto, and Delgado. That in turn affects his market value as RBIs are still largely taken into consideration by GMs and arbitrators alike.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my cooments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my cooments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my cooments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my cooments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my cooments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march,
hey, i was just wondering, how long did it take to make the movie "The Sandlot"? thatis one of the best movies i have ever seen. i really like yeah-yeah. he is so hot. so is rodreguize. how did you come up with the movie? did it take some hard work? i watched it on the 29 of march, 2004. my friend has that movie and when she let me borrow it, i watched it about a million times. that would be so cool if you could make another movie just like that, but then you couldn't have the same people, or could you? since at the very end of the movie, it shows most of them all grown-up and you can have like where they all went to work, since it tells you where they went off to in the movie. if you did, then i would be the first one to by it. marty york is so hot now. lol. well, that would be really cool if you did make a 2nd version of "The Sanslot" well, see you all later. i also hope you use some of my coments. good bye.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.
"The Sandlot Lover,"
catie a.