Archive for the 'Scott Kazmir' Category

Jun 20

Looking Back At Zambrano-For-Kazmir

Scott Kazmir, Victor Zambrano Cork Gaines No Comments »

Jack Dickey of Deadspin.com took a look back at the famous deal that brought Scott Kazmir to the Rays for Victor Zambrano. Dickey argues that while the results of the deal were certainly lopsided in favor of the Rays, the thinking behind the trade for the Mets was not as idiotic as most people believe.

“The Mets knew that Zambrano was actually better than he looked, and that he had a high ceiling. He struck out hitters at a nice clip—seven per nine—and simply walked and hit too many. He was young enough (28), with good stuff. A worthwhile gamble…Regrettably, Zambrano just didn’t pitch very well as a Met. He got hurt. You can blame the Mets doctors and the snake-oil salesmen in Tampa…When they dealt him, the Mets knew Kazmir well, and had every reason to believe they knew Zambrano well. They had “overvalued” and “undervalued” exactly right…”

This thinking makes sense on the surface, but it is also flawed. And it also explains perfectly the one shortcoming of the Tampa Bay Rays that they will never be able to overcome. That is, Read the rest of this entry »

Jun 17

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Good Price, Bad Price, And Youk Getting His

Chris Carter, David Price, Matt Moore, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 32 Comments »
Rays 7, Indians 0
Red Sox 4, Rays 2 (click image for boxscore)

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

THE GOOD: David Price. Yes, he got pounded and was out of the game after 5 innings. But when the right situation presented itself (first base open), he plunked Kevin Youkilis. And now we know that the Rays were just blowing smoke when they said Youkilis spiking Casey Kotchman was unintentional. And just in case you want to watch Youk getting spanked, over and over, this is for you…Casey At The Bat. Lucky. This is an awfully long lucky streak. Casey Kotchman homered and is now hitting .339.

THE BAD: David Price. One of those nights. Price can get away without his best stuff against the Blue Jays, but not against the Red Sox. It took him 106 pitches just to get through 5 innings as he walked 5 and allowed 3 runs. Guess we can take away that “Big Game” nickname. Oh wait. Nevermind…The Non-Closer Non-Save. Let’s ignore for a second that Kyle Farnsworth is not the official closer (he is). We have ALWAYS hated using closers in non-save situations. There is something about the intensity of the save that leads to closers letting up in non-save situations (queue 3,000 words on why this is not true from a website that thinks the game is played by robots). And Farnsworth was the latest casualty, giving up a home run in the top of the 9th. When the Rays got two on in the bottom of the 9th, scoring one run would have been a lot more doable than scoring two…Top O’ The Order To Nowhere. The Rays top 4 hitters in the lineup were 0-15 with 3 strikeouts and 1 walk. In the series they were 2-37 (.054) with 7 strikeouts.

THE TELLING: Matt Moore. Did you hear?…ESPN’s “Baseball Tonight” crew on the umpire warning both team after David Price hit Kevin Youkilis: “We have no idea why [the warning] happened.” *payingattentionfail*…Cory Wade tossed 2 more socreless innings for the Yankees. But yeah, the Rays bullpen was too good to fit Wade in someplace *smh*…

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Chris Carter was released by the Rays. Like Cory Wade, he likely had an opt-out date if he wasn’t yet in the majors. [Watching Durham Bulls Baseball]
  • The Mets GM confirmed that he will consider signing Scott Kazmir…There is no way this will end well. [NY Post]
  • I hate saying anything nice about Boston sports, but they are the new Title Town. [Business Insider]
  • Our new favorite golfer. It is the Kenny Powers of the PGA. [Business Insider]

DOWN ON THE FARM… Read the rest of this entry »

Jun 16

Black Wednesday For Ex-Rays

Jorge Cantu, Rafael Soriano, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 5 Comments »

Wednesday was not a good day to be an ex-Rays player…

As for Kazmir. Don’t look for a the Rays Read the rest of this entry »

Jun 10

The Scott Kazmir Story Is Turning Into A Tragedy

Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 7 Comments »

Scott Kazmir made his fourth start on a rehab assigment for the Angels and was so wild that in just 3.2 innings, he walked 5, hit 3 more and even threw 3 pitchers behind right-handed batters. According to the LA Times, it is now just “a matter of time” before he is released by the Angels. [LA Times]

Apr 11

Olney: Other Teams Now Hesistant To Deal With Rays

Andrew Friedman, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 12 Comments »

In his ESPN Insider piece, Buster Olney is hearing that other teams may be hesitant to deal with the Rays in the future because they seem to know exactly when to dump players…

Matt Garza got hit hard again, and he vows to make changes. Already hearing from other teams that they now warily approach trades with the Rays, who are viewed as a savvy organization and appear to have dumped Scott Kazmir at exactly the right time.

This shouldn’t come as a surprise. If you continually get the better end of trades, other teams are going to proceed with caution. Billy Beane and the A’s had this reputation for a while.

But it shouldn’t keep Read the rest of this entry »

Mar 21

Scott Kazmir Now Just Another Soft-Tossing Lefty

Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 9 Comments »

In 2004, when Scott Kazmir debuted with the Devil Rays following his trade from the Mets, he was a fireballing lefty with a fastball in the mid-90s. Seven years later, Kid K’s fastball is a misnomer.

So far this spring, Kazmir has pitched 12.1 innings, giving up 8 runs (7 earned) with 9 walks and only 6 strikeouts. But the most telling stat is the speed of Kazmir’s fastball.

In his most recent outing, Kazmir’s fastball was clocked at 87-89 mph, with only one pitch reaching 90. And that is considered an improvement. Most of the spring, Kazmir’s fastball has been closer to 85, or about the same as a JP Howell fastball.

And if Kazmir’s fastball averages less than 90 mph in 2011, it will just continue a troublesome trend to his career. Here is a look at Kazmir’s fastball and slider velocities throughout his big league career. The chart doesn’t paint a pretty picture. He is now basically a soft-tossing lefty, minus the pinpoint control.

Data via Fangraphs.com

 

Sep 20

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss McGee’s Case, Magic Numbers And Niemann On The Outside Looking In

Jake McGee, Jeff Niemann, Matt Joyce, Scott Kazmir, Victor Martinez Cork Gaines 3 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: Jake McGee. Joe Maddon would probably love a second lefty in the ‘pen in October. And after McGee’s 1-2-3, 2 strikeout 9th inning, and a fastball that reached 99, McGee took a big step in that direction…8. That is the Rays magic number to clinch a playoff spot with 14 to go. And while the Yankees have a half-game lead in the division, the two teams are tied in the loss column and the Rays hold the division tie-breaker. So in reality, the Rays hold a half-game lead over the Yankees.

THE BAD: Ex-Rays. They have been beating the Rays all season. This time it was Scott Kazmir in his first start at The Trop as a visitor…Jeff Niemann. Last week we projected Niemann as the 4th starter in the playoffs because we figured he would get things straightened out in the final 3 weeks. Now we have to believe that the 4th spot belongs to Wade Davis and Niemann is the one on the outside looking in.

THE TELLING: The Twins are 1 game behind the Yankees for the best record and home-field advantage in the AL playoffs…

WHERE THEY STAND: The Rays are 89-59, one-half game behind the Yankees and 6.5 games ahead of the Red Sox in the Wild Card. After 148 games in 2008, the Rays were 88-60.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

Sep 19

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Briggy’s Bat, Postgame Concerts And Kazmir’s Return

Mike Ekstrom, Reid Brignac, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 6 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: Reid Brignac. His 2-run home run in the 5th game the Rays the lead, and then he led off the 10th with a double. Jason Bartlett pinch-ran and would eventually score the winning run on a 2-out throwing error.

THE BAD: Postgame Concerts: If there is a downside to the postgame concerts it is that some of these shows will attract non-sports fans. And when that happens, the Rays will get a late-arriving crowd in which 5-10K people won’t start filtering into The Trop until the 7th inning and have no interest whatsoever in the game…Steinbrenner Monument. Tomorrow’s game time has been pushed back to 7:35 due to a pre-game ceremony unveiling George Steinbrenner’s plaque in Monument Park at Replica Yankee Stadium. Anybody think it is a coincidence that the Yankees waited until they were playing the Rays?

THE TELLING: Scott Kazmir will start today for the Angels. This will be his first start at Tropicana Field as an opposing player…Mike Ekstrom was recalled from Durham following last night’s game…According to CoolStandings.com the Rays have a 99.9% chance at making the playoffs.

WHERE THEY STAND: The Rays are 89-58 one-half game behind the Yankees (tied in the loss column and the Rays hold the tie-breaker) and 7.5 games ahead of the Red Sox in the Wild Card (8 in the loss column). After 147 games in 2008, the Rays were 88-59.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • The Durham Bulls season ended on Friday night when they lost game 4 of the Governor’s Cup Finals. [Indy week]
  • It sure looks like winning the division is much more important to the Rays than it is to the Yankees. [Tampa Tribune]
  • Justin Bieber does seem much more appropriate for “DJ Kitty.” [TAUNTR]
  • SBN Tampa Bay makes the case for Dan Johnson on the postseason roster. [SBN Tampa Bay]
  • Rob Bradford of WEEI makes a case for the Red Sox signing Carl Crawford this offseason. One interesting quote from Crawford in the piece: “I feel like if I didn’t have to run as much my offense would be better.“ [WEEI]
  • This week Read the rest of this entry »
Aug 24

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss MFIKY’s Way, James The Better And Chasing 95

Evan Longoria, Johnny Damon, Mike Ekstrom, Rafael Soriano, Scott Kazmir, Wade Davis Cork Gaines 11 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: Follow MFIKY, He Knows The Way. Rafael Soriano came in a shut down the Angels 1-2-3 in the 9th for his 38th save. But even more impressive was how he did it. 9 pitches. 3 strikeouts. He is the first pitcher to accomplish that feat this season…Bossman. BJ Upton stepped up to the plate against the guy that was his best friend on the Rays, Scott Kazmir. Upton didn’t waste any time, hitting the first pitch of the game for a home run…James the Better. Two runs and 8 hits got his pitch count up there (103) and he had to be pulled after 6 innings. But he did have his good stuff at times striking out 10 and walking just 1. His changeup spent a little too much time in the strikezone (20 of 25) but he did get 4 swinging strikes on the change. And that is what he needs to be successful…Chasing 95. The Rays now need only go 18-19 in their final 37 games to reach 95 wins. In the Wild Card era, every AL team that has won at least 95 games, went on to the playoffs.

THE BAD: Letting Kazmir Off The Hook. Once again the bats went cold. After getting 3 runs off of Scott Kazmir in the first, the Rays let the Angels off the hook, allowing Kaz to work into the 6th inning. In the Rays last 25 plate appearances, the Rays went 1-21 with 4 walks.

THE TELLING: The Rays magic number is 32 with 37 left to play…Mike Ekstrom was sent back to the minors to make room for Wade Davis who will start tonight…Evan Longoria was named AL Co-Player of the Week, sharing the award with Robinson Cano….For the first time this season, Joe Maddon used the same lineup for the 3rd consecutive game…Look for Manny Ramirez to be placed on waivers today by the Dodgers.

WHERE THEY STAND: The Rays are 77-48, tied with the Yankees for first place in the AL East. They are 5.5 games ahead of the Red Sox in the Wild Card (6 in the loss column). After 125 games in 2008, the Rays were 77-48.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Johnny Damon was claimed off waivers by the Red Sox, blocking the Rays from making a claim. But Damon does have a no-trade clause to Boston and is still deciding whether to accept the move. [The Heater]
  • The best question to arise from the leaked MLB financial documents is: Read the rest of this entry »
Aug 23

Was Scott Kazmir’s Negative Influence On David Price The Reason Kaz Was Traded?

David Price, Edwin Jackson, Scott Kazmir Cork Gaines 81 Comments »

Saturday is the one-year anniversary of the trade that sent Scott Kazmir to the Angels for Sean Rodriguez and two prospects. And tonight, the Rays face Kazmir for just the second time since the trade. Even though the Rays were just 3.5 games out in the Wild Card race and even though Kazmir was coming off his three best starts of the season, the Rays decided to dump Kazmir and the more than $20 million remaining on his contract.

Some saw the trade as a smart move. Others saw it as waiving the white flag. We just thought it looked bad for a team trying desparately to build a fanbase.

But was the chance to rid themselves of an expensive contract and add depth to the farm system the only reason for the trade? Maybe not.

According to two sources close to the Rays, the biggest reason for trading Kazmir was his negative influence on David Price. At the time, Price was struggling through a rookie campaign in which he would finish 10-7 with a 4.42 ERA.

According to our sources, it was accepted among those close to the Rays that prior to the 2009 season, Kazmir liked to partake in illegal recreational activities with his good friend Read the rest of this entry »

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