Author Topic: Plan "B" (Read 130963 times)

wpa2629 · « **Reply #2375 on:** January 22, 2009, 02:06:02 pm »

people please -- we had felipe frickin lopez at second last year -- a sack of potatoes is an upgrade at this point ...

spidernat · « **Reply #2376 on:** January 22, 2009, 02:14:57 pm »

Quote from: ACTAvation Energy on January 22, 2009, 01:41:15 pm

We'd finally have a true lead-off hitter here if we got him.

Quote from: ACTAvation Energy on January 22, 2009, 01:58:59 pm

I think way too much is made of a guy's place in a batting order.

KnorrForYourMoney · « **Reply #2377 on:** January 22, 2009, 02:23:31 pm »

Laugh all you want. My point is that Hudson is suited to be a lead-off hitter with his skill set. The fact that he's never done it in his career isn't enough evidence that he can't be adequate. People like to say that a guy's numbers are so heavily influenced by placing in the batting order. I happen to think, generally speaking, that someone's numbers will be roughly the same no matter where you put them in the order.

blue911 · « **Reply #2378 on:** January 22, 2009, 02:27:44 pm »

Quote from: ACTAvation Energy on January 22, 2009, 02:23:31 pm

Laugh all you want. My point is that Hudson is suited to be a lead-off hitter with his skill set. The fact that he's never done it in his career isn't enough evidence that he can't be adequate. People like to say that a guy's numbers are so heavily influenced by placing in the batting order. I happen to think, generally speaking, that someone's numbers will be roughly the same no matter where you put them in the order.

I think Hudson could be a fine leadoff hitter. If Hudson is above average at turning the double play (I have no idea) then his range really is secondary. But since Hudson's a free agent he'd have to want to hit leadoff.

tomterp · « **Reply #2379 on:** January 22, 2009, 06:25:29 pm »

Quote from: ACTAvation Energy on January 22, 2009, 01:41:15 pm

Hudson is a known quantity.

Hudson's coming off a wrist injury. How "known" is the extent of his recovery?

natsfan4evr · « **Reply #2380 on:** January 22, 2009, 07:40:26 pm »

I'd rather have Dunn than Hudson, does everyone agree?
I feel safer taking a chance on Hernandez than I do taking one on Nick.

spidernat · « **Reply #2381 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:19:24 pm »

I agree with that but some people don't like Dunn so they are bound to disagree.

houston-nat · « **Reply #2382 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:30:02 pm »

Don't like Dunn too much, but I would rather have Dunn and Hudson than Nick Johnson and Anderson Hernandez.

sportsfan882 · « **Reply #2383 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:31:28 pm »

Chico interview with NJ:

Quote

When Nick Johnson returned a phone call today, he was just about to board a plane for Las Vegas. He takes this trip every year -- a few friends, their wives, a festive weekend. Johnson's game is blackjack. He doesn't play golf and doesn't really care about the celebrity chef cuisine. "My wife has a hard time pulling me away from me from the table," he said.

Where Johnson is concerned, of course, any game that tests luck makes for an almost tragicomic reminder of Johnson's inescapable lucklessness -- but hey, he brought it up. So he brought the natural follow-up question upon himself. Which is: Does he ever win?

"No," he said. "They always seem to get me."

But let's not get carried away by giving Johnson's baseball career all that symbolic reinforcement. The Washington Nationals' first baseman is 30 years old, in the prime of his career. He's played just 38 games in the last two seasons, missing time with, first, a fractured femur and, next, a torn right wrist ligament. Such injuries have always plagued Johnson's career, a lesson on the difference between ability and durability. But through all the injuries, year after year -- he's had eight disabled list trips since 2000 -- there is another part in the Johnson cycle. Every year there is a point where he believes things will be different.

Right now, Johnson is feeling good. His wrist doesn't yet feel 100 percent, he said, but it's close. "It's not affecting how I'm swinging," Johnson said. "I haven't gotten outside, but I've been hitting live in a cage. Next week I'll go out on a field... Pretty much I'll just deal with what I've got, and get ready for the next year and come into the spring healthy and hopefully be on the field."

When Johnson is healthy, he remains an asset. Witness his 2006 season (.290 average, 23 HR, 110 BB) or even his .415 OBP last year, best on the team. Just as important, Johnson has a splendid glove and a steady demeanor; last year's Washington team could have benefited from both.

"Certainly when he's healthy he's one of our better players," Washington General Manager Jim Bowden said.

While the Nationals appreciate Johnson as a talent, they hesitate to trust him as a commodity. Last September, Bowden said that the Nationals would not enter the 2009 season with Johnson and fellow veteran Dmitri Young as their only options at first base. Washington's December bid for Mark Teixeira and its current interest in free agent Adam Dunn supports such an intention, but hasn't yet changed the first base picture. With spring training three weeks away, Johnson is the only established first baseman on the 40-man roster. The only other spring training invitees at that position: Young, currently fighting diabetes, and Brad Eldred, a 28-year-old with equal gifts for power and strikeouts. Josh Willingham, acquired from Florida in November, can also play first base but has been told he will be likely used as an outfielder.

Johnson's been busy this offseason -- his wife gave birth to a son, Nick Jr., in November -- but he's also caught the rumors. Oakland has expressed interest in trading for Johnson. Washington has listened, and might make a move if its depth chart at first base somehow changes. Speaking today, though, Johnson, expressed no particular desire to play closer to his Sacramento home. In fact, he said playing while close to home might have a downside.

"It might even make it a little bit weird because your mindset is a little different," Johnson said. "Usually you come home for the offseason, relax and turn it off. To be that close [to home] you'd have to -- I don't know, you can't turn it off and on. It's weird in my head."

So in the meantime, Johnson's status with the Nationals remains as tenuous as his health. But he's OK with that. He's lifting and stretching to improve his wrist. He's visiting a physical therapist three times per week. He plans on heading to Florida in the first week of February to begin workouts with Washington hitting coach Rick Eckstein. That, naturally, is the next trip he plans on making.

"One more thing," Johnson said before he finished his conversation today. "I'm gonna win this time in Vegas. You can put that in there."

houston-nat · « **Reply #2384 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:35:18 pm »

Quote

"One more thing," Johnson said before he finished his conversation today. "I'm gonna win this time in Vegas. You can put that in there."

Maybe he can help Elijah Dukes with the child support costs.

sportsfan882 · « **Reply #2385 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:42:52 pm »

Quote from: houston-nat on January 22, 2009, 08:35:18 pm

Maybe he can help Elijah Dukes with the child support costs.

NJ is a gambling man. I met him and RZ on a casino cruise ship last year during ST in Orlando.

DCFan · « **Reply #2386 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:49:15 pm »

Quote from: sportsfan882 on January 22, 2009, 08:31:28 pm

Chico interview with NJ:

and hopefully be on the field

We need to quit dicking around and get a first baseman.

hammondsnats · « **Reply #2387 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:55:34 pm »

Not this crap again. We heard this from NJ last year. How many more chances are we going to give this guy? His wrist isn't even 100% yet?!?! And he's penciled in as our Opening Day starter? Most players have been swinging the bat on a field for over a month now and he hasn't done that yet.

As much as I like Nick, I have one of his jersey shirts and have always applauded what he's done for this franchise, this is a big risk. That's why I would love to sign Dunn (or any slugger capable of playing LF/1B) and keep NJ, so when Nick goes on the DL, we have a Plan "B" in place.

DCFan · « **Reply #2388 on:** January 22, 2009, 08:58:09 pm »

Quote from: hammondsnats on January 22, 2009, 08:55:34 pm

How many more chances are we going to give this guy?

Until his contract expires in November and then it's hasta la vista, baby!

sportsfan882 · « **Reply #2389 on:** January 22, 2009, 11:15:19 pm »

Licey and the Gigantes are currently playing in the DWL Championship which is a best out of 9 games series. The Tigres won the first two games of the series.

Today they were scheduled to play Game 3 of the series but the Gigantes forfeit the game after they learned that their starting SS and lead-off man Felix Martinez had been suspended for attempting to attack the HP umpire during game 2 of the series. They refused to take the field in protest of the banning of Felix Martinez from the series.

Crazy. Anyways, Licey now takes a 3-0 lead in the best-of-9 series and Game 4 takes place on Friday.

hammondsnats · « **Reply #2390 on:** January 22, 2009, 11:31:14 pm »

thanks for the update sportsfan. i've been checking in over on the mlb.com. i know d-cab got shelled last night but he's been pitching pretty well recently.

hammondsnats · « **Reply #2391 on:** January 22, 2009, 11:44:02 pm »

Quote

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/9105188/It%27s-not-too-late-to-land-big,-free-agent-stars

Adam Dunn
Best fit: Angels
Likely destination: Washington

Poor Adam Dunn. He's waited his turn. He's been under team control. He's gone through the arbitration process. He's paid the dues that his union has decided are appropriate for him to pay while waiting for his first opportunity for the big payday.

But thanks to some self-serving knuckleheads on Wall Street and a decade full of poor mortgages, Adam Dunn sits at home, counting down the days to spring training without a destination in sight.

If you think the economy has hurt the value of your portfolio, take a look at what it has done to the value of Adam Dunn.

Sure, Dunn strikes out a lot. But last time I checked, Alfonso Soriano struck out a lot and that didn't keep the Cubs from bringing his powerful bat to Wrigley. And Soriano only takes a walk about once a week. Dunn takes one every game.

And yes, Dunn is a slow-prodding defensive liability, but Carlos Lee isn't exactly Carl Yastrzemski out there in left field, and that didn't stop the Astros from doling out $100 million to get his bat in their lineup.

So why should we be so naive as to think that all of a sudden teams would shy away from a guy with five straight 40-HR seasons just because he strikes out a lot and isn't the best defender.

It's a little too convenient that the during the same offseason that money suddenly becomes scarce around Major League Baseball, general managers all of the sudden figure out the defensive metrics that only the "stat guys" were smart enough to comprehend and shy away from long-term deals with the Adam Dunns and Pat Burrells of the baseball world?

The baseball world has always been one of keeping up with the Joneses (or perhaps keeping up with the Steinbrenners), so when one team got their big bopper, every other team had to have one as well or else it looked like they weren't trying. If a team didn't hand out a nine-figure contract to their best player to keep him around, their fans and local media decided it meant they weren't dedicated to winning. Why else would the Blue Jays agree to give Vernon Wells a $126 million contract that didn't start for two years?

But this offseason's economic state has caused a league-wide staring contest between general managers and the flooded power-hitting leftfielder market, driving the price of said hulking hitters down until someone eventually blinks. Pat Burrell blinked first and got two years at well below market value to go play in the Tropicana Dump.

How long until Dunn blinks?

That will depend on who has a spot for him.

The one thing Dunn has going for him is his relative versatility, in that a team could theoretically use him at first base too. It doesn't open many doors, but then again, he only needs one.

The Angels, for instance, could use a first baseman to replace the production they lost when Mark Teixeira put on his pinstripes. If they were willing to sacrifice defense for a few years, they could probably get him for a nice salary and a short commitment. If Burrell got $16 million over two years, then Dunn could command $20 million to $24 million over the same span.

Dunn could fit well in Colorado as a power replacement for the departed Matt Holliday, and that sure would be fun to watch, but the cost of having an air traffic controller employed full time might be too much for the Rockies to handle, as would be the debacle of watching Dunn chase down balls in the expansive Coors outfield. He'd be a triple waiting to happen.

Ultimately he should probably DH, but the list of potential contending teams in need of a DH is few and far between. The Twins could use another big bat, but their best hitters are already left-handed, and most of their offensive talent lies in the OF and the spillover will get at-bats at DH.

Dunn is reportedly still asking for four years, $56 million, which could be attainable if he can find a team that had him ranked ahead of Burrell, Milton Bradley and Raul Ibanez in the LF/DH department. The only team, however, that has shown any interest in approaching that number is the Nationals, who seem to want to make a splash with a big bat. If Dunn is happy playing through the rest of his prime on a last place club in a park where home runs die on the warning track, then he might be able to get his money.

Dunn's best bet, however, is probably to sign a one-year deal with whichever team decides that a low risk commitment for 40 home runs and a .400 OBP is worth taking, and then test the free agent waters again in a more prosperous world.

Why is this so hard again?

sportsfan882 · « **Reply #2392 on:** January 22, 2009, 11:51:32 pm »

I'm with the GMs on this one. They recognize the players that aren't worth a crap and this proves it.

The writer is a moron. 4 years, $56 Million for Dunn would be one of the worst contracts in baseball history.

I hope the writer is right that Dunn only gets a 1-year deal.

hammondsnats · « **Reply #2393 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:03:34 am »

Quote from: sportsfan882 on January 22, 2009, 11:51:32 pm

I'm with the GMs on this one. They recognize the players that aren't worth a crap and this proves it.

The writer is a moron. 4 years, $56 Million for Dunn would be one of the worst contracts in baseball history.

I hope the writer is right that Dunn only gets a 1-year deal.

Dude no one is saying Dunn is going to get 4 years/$56 million (or even that he's worth it). The most he gets is three years nothing over $40 million. I don't know why you call people morons just because they think Dunn has talent.

MrMadison · « **Reply #2394 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:11:40 am »

Quote

The writer is a moron. 4 years, $56 Million for Dunn would be one of the worst contracts in baseball history.

good lord, you are such a drama queen.

you make MY hyperbole look perfectly reasonable.

sportsfan882 · « **Reply #2395 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:13:23 am »

Quote from: MrMadison on January 23, 2009, 12:11:40 am

good lord, you are such a drama queen.

you make MY hyperbole look perfectly reasonable.

It's true. If we gave Dunn that contract it would cripple our franchise for years to come. We'd be screwed for good.

Ali the Baseball Cat · « **Reply #2396 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:14:19 am »

I love how protective people are of a stingy billionaire's assets

cmdterps44 · « **Reply #2397 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:16:53 am »

Quote from: sportsfan882 on January 23, 2009, 12:13:23 am

It's true. If we gave Dunn that contract it would cripple our franchise for years to come. We'd be screwed for good.

How can one guy "screw us for good?" An offer like that, sure its nothing we want to do, but why would that ruin our franchise, how.

Air Zimmerman · « **Reply #2398 on:** January 23, 2009, 12:21:23 am »

Quote from: wpa2629 on January 22, 2009, 02:06:02 pm

people please -- we had felipe frickin lopez at second last year -- a sack of potatoes is an upgrade at this point ...

Flop should've never been our starting 2b. i standy by my stance that Manny wrongfully benched Belliard 19 games into the season. evident by Belliard finishing with a .290 average and 11 homers. if he was never benched, i bet Belly would've approached 20 homers along with his .290 average.

spidernat · « **Reply #2399 on:** January 23, 2009, 08:41:09 am »

Quote from: sportsfan882 on January 23, 2009, 12:13:23 am

It's true. If we gave Dunn that contract it would cripple our franchise for years to come. We'd be screwed for good.

Quote from: MrMadison on January 23, 2009, 12:11:40 am

good lord, you are such a drama queen.

you make MY hyperbole look perfectly reasonable.

Except he's not exaggerating to make a point as you do. I think he probably believes or has convinced himself that this would be the case. If that contract, relatively small for baseball, would potentially screw our franchise for years to come then we are already in big trouble and shouldn't expect to compete for a long time if ever. Getting Dunn at 2 years in the neighborhood of 22-26 would be decent.