Archive for the 'Joe Blanton' Category

Nov 25

[THE HANGOVER] Edwin Jackson Would Be An Expensive Middle Reliever

Aaron Heilman, Andy Sonnanstine, Daniel Cabrera, Dave Bush, David Price, Edwin Jackson, Joe Blanton, Joe Maddon, Matt Spring Cork Gaines 6 Comments »

There has been much speculation about what the Rays will do with Edwin Jackson. Let’s assume for the moment that the Rays do not trade Andy Sonnanstine and both Sonny and David Price are in the rotation at the end of Spring Training. The Rays would then have two options. Trade Jackson or more him to the bullpen.

If Jackson is moved to the bullpen, one factor that has been ignored so far is cost. Jackson is arbitration-eligible for the first time. Taking a look at starting pitchers that were arbitration-eligible for the first time last season, Jackson will make $2.5-3 million in 2009 if he goes to arbitration or signs a one-year contract. Jackson is coming off a season in which he was 14-11 with a 101 ERA+. Last year, Dave Bush was coming off a season in which he went 12-10 with a 88 ERA+. Bush signed a one-year deal for $2.55 million. Joe Blanton, signed a one-year deal for $3.7 million after going 14-10 with a 106 ERA+. However, Blanton had a stronger resume prior to arbitration-eligibility than Jackson. Daniel Cabrera, signed a one-year deal for $2.875 million after going 9-18 with an 83 ERA+.

On the contrary, relief pitchers in their first year of arbitration-eligibility signed one-year deals for $0.8-1.2 million in most cases. Aaron Heilman, who was coming off a strong 2007 season (140 ERA+, 1.070 WHIP), and pitches in a role comparable to what Jackson would be for the Rays, signed a one-year deal for $1.2 million.

Therefore, if Jackson is moved to the bullpen, the Rays will pay have to pay him 2-3 times the salary of a comparable fourth-year relief pitcher, without even knowing if Jackson will be effective out of the bullpen.

So the question that needs to be asked is: Are the Rays willing to pay $2.5-3 million for Jackson to be a middle reliever, with the hopes that he could someday become an effective closer, or would they prefer a player in that slot that makes $0.5-1 million with little or no upside, but may be more effective than Jackson in 2009?


DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…
  • Posts over the next few days will be limited. Have a Happy Thanksgiving and safe travels.
  • An interesting take on how the Rays’ 10 years of sucktitude, followed by sudden success mirrored a similar run by the Democratic Party. [The League of Nations]
  • Here is a roundup of some of the top talent available in the Rule 5 draft, a list that includes two Rays. [MLB Trade Rumors]
  • David Chalk just keeps churning out the “Your Sportsmen Ain’t S#!t” posts. [Bugs and Cranks]
  • The Examiner takes a look at catching prospect Matt Spring. [The Examiner]

Oct 28

[THE HANGOVER] Rays 3.5 Innings From Regaining Homefield Advantage

BJ Upton, Bud Selig, Carl Crawford, Cole Hamels, David Price, Grant Balfour, Joe Blanton, Joe Maddon, Rocco Baldelli Cork Gaines 13 Comments »



Click on above images to be taken to full standings, box scores or schedule…

THE GOOD: No more Cole Hamels. The Rays are now 3 and a half innings away from sending the series back to the Trop and regaining home field advantage. And with last’s night game being suspended, they know Hamels is done for the series. Hamels only threw 75 pitches and despite the run in the 6th inning, he probably would have been good for at least one more inning…No more Scott Kazmir. While the suspended game cost the Phillies at least one inning from their ace, the Rays were already into their bullpen with Grant Balfour pitching the 5th inning…BJ Upton’s baserunning. We think it is safe to say that Upton’s trip around the bases in the 6th inning is enough to erase the 724 base running gaffes committed during the regular season. After reaching on an infield single, it was imperative that Upton get into scoring position with 2 outs. Despite 4 pickoff attempts, a tricky lefty on the mound and the River Jordan standing between he and second base, Upton got a great jump and stole second base easily. But Upton saved his best baserunning for last. When Carlos Pena drove a single into left-center, Upton first had to traverse the mud between second and third. The toughest part was then rounding third, crossing into the soaked grass while turning at near-full speed. You could see the strain on Upton’s face just to stay up-right as he raced home, slid past the catcher and slapped home plate. If the Rays go on to win the World Series, it is not hyperbole to wonder if that will go down as the biggest baserunning play in World Series history, on par with Dave Roberts’ stolen base in the ’04 ALCS.

THE BAD: Scott Kazmir. 103 pitches in 4 innings. 6 walks. Of course, maybe we should label that “Good” considering Kazmir gave up 4 hits, 6 walks and hit a batter in 4 innings and somehow only allowed 2 runs…Baserunning gaffes. In the first inning, Carl Crawford hit a line drive that Jimmy Rollins dropped. Crawford had stopped running. Otherwise he would have beat the throw to first. In the 5th inning, Rocco Baldelli led off the inning with a pop up that was dropped by Rollins. Baldelli could have easily made it to second base and yet was standing on first when the play ended. That was followed by Jason Bartlett grounding into a double play.

THE TELLING: Joe Maddon stated after the game that Grant Balfour would be his pitcher to start the 6th inning. Balfour only threw 9 pitches last night and would not have been available to pitch tonight had Maddon used somebody else to start the 6th inning. The other option would have been to go with David Price who is a starting pitcher and would be used to the typical pregame routine. Of course, with Cole Hammels due to lead off the bottom of the 6th, it is possible that Maddon is starting with Balfour to force the Phillies to use one of their left-handed pinch-hitters and then will substitute David Price without Balfour throwing a pitch…This wouldn’t have happened in The Trop…Joe Maddon moved Carl Crawford up to the 2-spot in the lineup shifting BJ Upton, Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria down a spot. Maddon said he wanted to tweak the lineup but didn’t want to do anything too drastic…The Rays had already checked out of their hotel and had to bus 30 miles to Wilmington, Delaware to find a place to stay.

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Bud Selig insists that he informed both teams prior to the game that a World Series game would not be shortened, only suspended no matter what the score. However, players in both clubhouses were unaware of the rule change and Rays players insisted they thought they were in their final at bat in the 6th inning. [Yahoo! Sports]
  • Joe Posnanski says baseball should have never let the game start, saying they used “reasons that defied every bit of logic and sports-sense imaginable.” [Kansas City Star]
  • Rob Neyer wonders why the game wasn’t suspended after the 5th inning with the score 2-1 Phillies. Some Phillies fans are a little upset to say the least. [ESPN]
  • Jayson Stark says that no matter what happened before and what happens next, this series will always be remembered for the rain. [ESPN]
  • Gary Shelton says the Rays are not dead yet and if the Rays go on to win the World Series, they should add some infield mud to the trophy case. [St. Pete Times]
  • Joe Maddon said that he does not buy Joe Blanton’s explanation that it was just dirt on his cap. [St. Pete Times]
  • John Schlegel points out that rain delays and postponements are nothing new in the World Series. [MLB]
  • A Top 10 list of reasons last night’s game was suspended. [Big League Stew]

Oct 27

[THE HANGOVER] Rays On Brink Of Elimination…Again

Akinori Iwamura, Andy Sonnanstine, Carlos Pena, Edwin Jackson, Evan Longoria, Joe Blanton, Joe Maddon Cork Gaines 13 Comments »



Click on above images to be taken to full standings, box scores or schedule…

THE GOOD: The Rays have been here before. July 18. Rays enter second-half losers of 7 straight. A loss out of the break and the season is over. The Rays win. September 9. Rays have lost 4 in a row including series opener in Boston. Lead in the AL East is down to half-game. Experts say one more (inevitable) loss and season is over. Rays win. September 16. Rays have lost 3 in a row and lead is down to percentage points. Experts say one more (inevitable) loss and the dream run is over. Rays win. Game 7 of the ALCS. The Rays have lost 2 in a row to the Sox and one more (inevitable) loss and the Rays go home. Rays win. It is now game 5 of the World Series. One more loss and the season is over. Of course, one more win and the Rays suddenly have home-field advantage in the World Series again…This must be killing the Red Sox and their Pink Hat Nation. They had to play the Rays while the Phillies somehow get the Devil Rays.

THE BAD: We don’t know this team. Nothing is working in Philly. If it is just the Phillies playing well, then we tip our cap. But if it is because the Rays are playing tight then we would like to tip our foot up their asses…Andy Sonnanstine. Whether it be the 12-day layoff or the nerves of pitching in the World Series or a combination of both, Sonnanstine was not being Sonnnanstine. Of his first 14 pitches, 10 were balls. His 3 walks matched a career-high at any level. Of course the 6 hits in 4 innings is nothing new. We have always said, when Sonny is good, he can be very good. But when he is bad, he is very hittable. For Sonnanstine, he has to be near-perfect to get by with only a mid-80s fastball. Last night he was not…Edwin Jackson. Really? The pitcher? Jackson should be ashamed and embarrassed. And if he ever pitches in a Rays uniform again it will be too soon. The pitcher? *banging head on desk*…Joe Maddon. And why is Edwin Jackson in the game at all. Shit on top of shit is just more shit…The offense. 3 of the Rays 5 hits came from the 9-spot in the lineup…Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria. 0-29 with 15 Ks. Longoria is back to guessing. In the 6th inning he swung at a first-pitch breaking ball that was 6 inches outside. Instead of looking for pitches to attack, he has made up his mind to swing at anything and hope for the best…The Defense. 10 errors in last 8 games…Phillies leadoff hitters. On base 16 times in the first 3 games and they were on 4 more times last night.

THE TELLING: Cliff Floyd was removed from the World Series roster due to an injured shoulder and replaced by Eric Hinske…Ben Zobrist, or “The Good Christian” as Mrs. Professor likes to call him, got the start in right field over Gabe Gross, “The Shitty Christian” (The “Good” and “Shitty” of course refer to how she feels about their play, not their particular religious beliefs)…According to CoolStandings.com the Rays have a 13.5% chance of winning the World Series. According to the national media it is a 0.0% chance…After hearing the “Rocky” theme 36 thousand times last night, we are burning all of our “Rocky” DVDs today. Of course, we probably should have burned “5″ a while ago.

DEVIL DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Why is “lack of experience” suddenly a problem for the Rays? It wasn’t a problem when they were playing in Chicago or Boston? And exactly how many current Phillies were on the 1980 and 1993 World Series teams? [USA Today]
  • Joe Maddon spoke with the home plate umpire after the second inning about what he believed was pine tar on the cap of Joe Blanton. [MLB]
  • John Romano says that the behavior of Phillies fans towards Rays family members and employees has been more suitable for a prison yard than a major league baseball game, going so far as to pour beer on a 9-year old boy…Stay classy Philadelphia. [St. Pete Times]
  • Phillies fans were even throwing mustard packs at Joe Maddon’s granddaughter…Strange. We expect better from Phi…Never mind. [LA Times]
  • You can tell from Evan Longoria’s quotes that he has no idea what he is doing right now. [Boston Herald]
  • Jerry Crasnick takes a closer look at the struggles of Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria. [ESPN]
  • Ken Rosenthal says the Rays hitters have lost command of the strike zone. [Fox Sports]
  • Joe Smith takes a look at the rare errors committed by Akinoria Iwamura. [St. Pete Times]
  • Gary Shelton says that even this is a lot to overcome for the Rays. [St. Pete Times]
  • Who doesn’t know what “WPA” is? Duh. Clearly the reason the Rays are losing the World Series is because they suck at wireless security. [DRays Bay]
  • The Hardball Times takes a look at how both managers mismanaged game 3. [The Hardball Times]
  • Just in case we didn’t make it clear enough how awful Edwin Jackson was last night. [Sully Baseball]
  • Joey Johnston takes a look at how the Rays bullpen handles hostile fans and each other. [Tampa Tribune]
Feb 08

[HOT STOVE RUMORS] The Rays Are Not Talking To The A’s About Joe Blanton

DRaysBay, Joe Blanton, Ken Rosenthal, Matt Garza, Rays Anatomy Cork Gaines 11 Comments »

This is what we hate about baseball’s new “Hot Stove League”…

By now most of you have heard about the Rays supposed interest in Oakland’s Joe Blanton.

First let’s go back to the original source. Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports had a video report in which he talks about the possibility of the A’s trading Blanton.

From the report:

At least two teams are showing significant interest in Blanton, one of which figures to be the Reds…The Twins, desperate for a veteran starting pitcher, could be one possibility for Blanton. The Rays, deep in prospects, could be another.

It was just a guess. Pure speculation. Never mind that there are about 20 reasons not to make this trade.

Seems like a non-story right? Apparently not. We get 800 words from Rays Anatomy, and we get not one, but two posts from DRays Bay, including 750 words from RJ Anderson.

In Anderson’s defense, he actually takes the stance that the trade would be a bad idea (he is right), but both RA and DRB write their pieces as if the Rays are indeed talking to the A’s about a trade, despite a lack of evidence to suggest this is true.

from Rays Anatomy:

Having made one move for Matt Garza earlier this off-season, general manager Andrew Friedman is once again in the mix for another possible arm to add to the starting staff.

from DRays Bay:

I’m not going to divulge into the price for him, because like everyone outside of the Oakland and Tampa offices I simply have no clue what it is or will be.

Anderson does refer to the talks as “Joe Blanton rumors”, but the only reason it is a “rumor” in the first place is because these sites misrepresented the words of one person. Besides, does a rumor that has zero merit require 750 words? For comparison, most Rays columns in the Tampa Tribune and the St. Pete Times run between 500-600 words, and those are rarely based on the whimsical guessing of a FoxSports.com writer.

This is not meant as a referendum on either of these two sites. If a writer thinks trading for Blanton is a good idea or a bad idea, they should tell us that and why. But there is no need to present this as something that may actually happen when there is zero evidence that it actually could.

This is something that is not restricted to blogs. In fact journalists are also guilty, more so because of their wider audiences. Joel Sherman of the New York Post wrote an article in which he speculated that the Rays would trade Scott Kazmir this off-season. His source? “An executive familiar with Tampa’s thinking”. For all we know, he talked to the VP of a Starbucks. Next thing we knew the rumor was everywhere, that the Rays were seeking to trade Kazmir.

In today’s baseball landscape, everybody loves a good rumor. But many are not careful as to how they handle those rumors, turning something as simple as one person’s “guess” into a full-fledged trade negotiation between two teams.

We understand it is a slow news week, but we owe it to Rays fans to report the happenings in the Raysiverse accurately and fairly. A typical fan that reads these sites should not have to take the time to read the original source. They should be able to read articles like these and know that the “rumor” was never so. Otherwise, we have to deal with a dozen emails asking us what we think about Blanton, which makes us write 600 words on why the rumors are toilet, when we would rather be talking about how hot Ben Zobrists’ wife is.

By the way…the second team that Rosenthal was trying to guess? It was the Dodgers.

Why Trade For Joe Blanton? [Rays Anatomy]
Rays Interested In Blanton? [DRays Bay]
A Game of Large, Grotesque Shadows [DRays Bay]
Scott-Stove League [New York Post]
Blanton May Be Traded [MLB Trade Rumors]