MVN - Most Valuable Network

McLaren’s Ranting Won’t Do It

This is a team in trouble, and simply screaming and releasing a couple scapegoats will not solve the problem. As I mentioned in my previous post, McLaren and Bavasi did not address the problems when they cut Wilkerson and Norton–they thinned the outfield and cut a productive pinch hitter, while leaving their problems intact. Supposedly, there was a message to Sexson, Johjima, and Vidro that they need to up their production. But Johjima was just extended another three years in spite of a total lack of production and in spite of a perfectly capable replacement being ready to come up (and, indeed, coming up without a position). If anything, the message to Sexson, Johjima, and Vidro is that their jobs are pretty safe–the M’s management is more interested in finding a scapegoat than admitting a several-million dollar mistake.

So now, where do we stand?

Catcher:

Johjima–Not going anywhere. New contract not only didn’t help Clement, it makes Johjima less tradable down the stretch drive if we aren’t contending.

Clement–Not going anywhere. Should not be considered in any trade offers.

Burke–Will need to stick around because we want Johjima and Clement in the lineup together.

Infield:

Sexson–Probably untradable. Needs to start hitting.

Lopez–Decent, but overrated. Similar to Vidro in his younger days, but not as good a hitter.

Betancourt–Worth keeping

Beltre–Good player paid like a star thanks to one great season.

Bloomquist–Pinch running and versatility is only reason to keep him around. Hitting at best is unacceptable.

Cairo–No reason for him to be here, except that outfield is now so thin that if Bloomquist is in outfield and we need an infielder, Cairo is it.

Vidro–Maybe Cairo isn’t it. If Clement/Johjima DHs, then Vidro becomes the last infielder. He was awful when he was young and will be worse now. He hits better than Bloomquist or Cairo. Untradable, grossly overpaid, an absolutely insane acquisition.

Outfield:

Balentien–Young, raw. Will probably struggle to hit .250, but will hit some homers. Will also strike out a lot. We will be frustrated, but give him a year or two.

Ibanez–Still hitting well. Every year I expect him to slow down, and every year he defies me.

Ichiro–Still as good a pure hitter as there is. Not hitting well yet this year, but I don’t anticipate that being a problem. He has always been a bit of a slow starter.

And that is it. Bloomquist is our fourth outfielder, now that Wilkerson has been cut.

Rotation:

Batista–A good fifth starter, nothing more. His contract was ridiculous, but we haven’t been hurt too much by it.

Washburn–A good fourth starter, nothing more. His contract was ridiculous.

Silva–A good third starter, nothing more. Off to a good start, today’s game notwithstanding. His contract was beyond ridiculous (sense a pattern here?)

Bedard–Potential ace with health issues. If he stays healthy, he’s a potential Cy Young.

Hernandez–Potential ace, but still very young. Needs to be kept from overuse, which is especially an issue with our bullpen.

Bullpen:

Baek–Long reliever/spot starter. Could be decent #5, certainly at far less price than Batista.

Green–Ground ball specialist. Struggles with control too much to be relied upon.

Lowe–Setup man/backup closer struggling to return from injury. Control has been strong in past but horrible this year.

Morrow–Setup man who needs a clear role. Control is awful. Probably rushed. Doesn’t handle pressure at all. We need to either develop him as a reliever or as a starter, but stop this rigmarole of using him as a major league setup man and telling everyone he will become a starter.

Putz–Closer, normally dominant but struggling this year with control and injuries.

Rhodes–Setup man returning from injury, handles pressure better than anyone.

Rowland-Smith–Setup man struggling with control after strong last year.

Overall impression: We have a strong rotation–the back end is overpriced, but solid. Down the stretch drive, we should look to trade the back end if we are not in contention. The bullpen is an inexperienced mess without defined roles. Half the pen needs more minor league seasoning. The infield is overcrowded, the outfield is too thin.

Recommendations:

Release or farm Cairo. Call up Jeremy Reed and install him as a fourth outfielder and pinch hitter–maybe even platoon him with Balentien. Call up R.A. Dickey and have him replace Morrow for a veteran presence in a young bullpen and additional long man, while Morrow pitches the full season in Tacoma as a starter. Next year, Morrow, Feierabend, and Baek compete for Washburn’s and Bautista’s jobs, saving the team two huge salaries.

This entry was posted on Sunday, May 4th, 2008 at 11:20 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.