Miscellaneous Wednesday Notes
I know everyone’s ornery today because Gleeman is having another of those stupid live chats rather than actually penning an article. So let’s just get to some news, shall we?
The Cubs have been sold, for $900M, to some rich guy who claims to be a Cubs fan. Apparently, my request for a government bailout of $4 billion was ignored. (My reasoning was: “If you don’t give me free billions, I won’t be a billionaire!” This is the logic that puts taxpayer money into the pockets of rich guys in the form of “stadiums” or the more egregious “stay rich cash infusion.”) If I had gotten that well-deserved money, I certainly would have bid more than $900M to own the Cubs. Which would have been “good” for the economy. Yet another unforgivable screw up. I’m still waiting for that check.
In other Cubs news, they’re suing Under Armour. I, um, don’t know what to say about this other than that it’s probably not your underwear’s fault. If you know what I mean.
A little while back, Brendan Harris was interviewed by Baseball Prospectus. Their Q&A sessions with players aren’t often very interesting; the players tend to spew the same cliched crap they give to regular media people. However, I learned that Harris has a degree in political science and actually seems like a pretty smart guy.
He revealed that he spends most of his time talking to Slowey and Breslow, and that Cuddyer occasionally tries to join the conversation. Slowey and Breslow are generally regarded as the smartest guys on the team, so it’s no surprise that another smart guy would gravitate towards them — though they have talent, which Harris lacks.
He was asked to compare Gardy to Joe Maddon:
They’re two different guys with two different styles, albeit both successful. Joe is more of the professor type where he’s very analytical, although he will definitely get intense, too. He is more of a “thinks things through” [type]. Gardy is a little more emotional and really gets into the game. Sometimes you almost can’t tell if Gardy is out there playing or if he’s managing. He wears it on his sleeve a little more.Now, there’s really nothing there that’s not obvious … but I will say that I have never been confused about whether Gardy is playing or managing. I’ve been confused as to whether he’s managing or not managing, but … playing? Really? But I do like it that Gardy’s emotional — it makes for better pictures. See the logo at the top of the page.
They finished with this:
DL: I can’t let you get away without bringing up that you were once compared, as a minor league prospect, to Albert Pujols.Looks like we got the wrong infielder. And I would like to know who ever compared Harris to Pujols, and whether they still have a job.BH: Oh, man. Let’s put it this way: If that was a diagnosis, I’d say, ‘Doctor, you were way off base on that one.’
And to finish, I’d just like to point out that however much other teams are complaining about the “economy” getting them down and constraining their wallets, the Twins are doing just fine. The team is on pace to sell a franchise record 11000 season tickets for 2009, and they have this to say about their financials:
“We’re in a unique situation with the new ballpark on the horizon, the last year in the Metrodome, a very competitive team and a great value proposition in terms of flexibility and affordability,” said Steve Smith, the Twins’ vice president of ticket sales and service. “In some respects, I think we’re riding above some of the economic pain that some other organizations are feeling right now.”Well, personally, I think that’s great. It’s certainly good to hear that we’re doing well, which is more enjoyable than the schadenfreude of hearing that the Mets ownership was taken to the cleaners by Madoff.
So I guess it’s a good thing the Twins are one of the few teams doing well financially this offseason. You can really tell by the way they’re throwing their money around.
8 comments8 Comments so far
Leave a reply
The dude who bought the Cubs apparently grew up in Chicago, and met his wife at a Cubs game. Whether or not they are still married I do no know. But its better than those two random rich guys from New York who have no affliliation with the Cubs other than the team was for sale, and they wanted to buy something expensive.
I’m late to the party, but It’s unfair to say Brendan Harris has no talent (hyperbole notwithstanding). He struggled at ss and second, but he did a nice job at third, with plenty of doubles to his credit. In fact, I’d like to see more Harris than Buscher in a possible third-base platoon this season. Decent defense, better throws to first, more power.
You’re right. My point was that Slowey and Breslow are both better at baseball than Harris is, not that Harris is bad. (IE, he “lacks” talent in comparison to them, not in comparison to, say, me.)
I don’t know that Harris has more power than Buscher. He’s demonstrated slightly more thus far, but I’d say Buscher has more power potential. That said, you’re right about the defense.
That makes sense, although it’s a little early to call on Breslow’s talent. I was pulling for Harris last year, especially when he started cranking out extra-base hits. It was a nice surprise when he was in the lineup. I wonder what would happen if Harris got the third-base job full time. (With no real evidence) I think he could handle the position effectively, and if he’s comfortable at third, his offense might improve (like the Cuddy-to-RF switch).
In my opinion, it’s likely that either Harris or Buscher or a combination of the two will play third well enough. It’s less likely that Crede will stay healthy and put up decent numbers in the Dome.
I whole-heartedly agree (and have for some time) that a Buscher/harris platoon, if used correctly, can be very effective at third. Some folks think if you platoon at a position, it is a sign of weakness, or that you don’t have one good player, you have two bad players. I do not think this is true. If Buscher hits righties very well, but not lefties, why in god’s name would we let him bat against lefties?
Also, anti-platoon fans think that if you’re willing to put a platoon out there, it means you’re opposed to having one good player. I mean, yes, it would be better if we had another Joe Mauer on our team to play third base, but if we have two guys who play roughly adequate 3B defense and one mashes lefties and one mashes righties, well, that can be pretty damn effective.
Buscher against righties combined with Harris against lefties adds up to considerably better numbers than any of the available third basemen, whether they’re free agents or trade candidates.
and its not like when buscher starts at third harris isn’t avilable to do anything else. He can pinch hit for buscher (or any other lefty) sub in to play second or short in the event of an injury or if someone is lifted for a pinch hitter (which probably won’t happen since both middle infielders are switch hitters).
You have to have 25 guys on the team anyway; you might as well have 25 who are good enough to play.