Yardbarker: Joe Crede

Jhonny Peralta: The most-talked about man in Cleveland sports

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:43:05 -0500

The most talked about man in Cleveland sports these days spells his name incorrectly. But he is swinging a hot bat, and many Tribe fans are having second thoughts about their earlier call for a trade of shortstop Jhonny Peralta. Should the Tribe trade their hottest hitter and the A.L. home run leader among shortstops?

Even All-Stars agree that Yankee Stadium smells bad

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:49:34 -0500

I'm not a professional baseball player and even I could have told you that Yankee Stadium reeks. It appears that this year's crop of All-Stars won't miss Yankee Stadium as much as ESPN would like you to think. Among the complaints are: the smell, the tiny clubhouse and the low dugout roof; however, one thing came up more often than not and that was the putrid smell. The new stadium may not have all of the memories of the current Yankee Stadium, but least it will smell better.. hopefully.

All-Star '08: The Final Recall

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 21:15:26 -0500

Every year, MLB.com makes a big production "The Final Vote", letting the fans pick the 32nd man on the All-Star team in each league. But arguing about who got snubbed is really only half the fun of All-Star debates. With that in mind, I thought BBTF commenter "DKDC" had a great idea when he suggested that we vote one player off each team, too. You can now do just that in All Star '08: The Final Recall.

Below I've listed the six eligible players in each league, along with a brief summary of their candidacies. Unlike The Final Vote, you may only vote once in The Final Recall. Unless you can get past the cookies, in which case you can vote as many time as you please.

Joe Crede, CHW: On-base percentage of only .333. Zero triples. Has grounded into nine double plays. 0/3 in stolen base attempts.
Dustin Pedroia, BOS: OBP down 25 points from last year; also not as gritty. Zero intentional walks. Has grounded into eight double plays.
Joe Saunders, LAA: Not actually good; mostly a product of good defense and luck. 63 Ks in 120.3 IP. Zero shutouts.
George Sherrill, BAL: Was the third best player traded for Erik Bedard. 22 walks in 38.2 innings. ~~Five~~ Six blown saves.
Ichiro Suzuki, SEA: .068 ISO. Plays for the Mariners. May be drunk during game.
Jason Varitek, BOS: See here. Has grounded into 10 double plays. Having caught four no-hitters does not make you an All-Star.

Aaron Cook, COL: Has allowed 141 hits and struck out only 64 in 132.2 innings. Plays in a division which is the rough equivalent of AA.
Kosuke Fukudome, CHC: 65 strikeouts, only seven home runs. Has not actually caused his teammates to walk more, despite what you may read.
Cristian Guzman, WAS: 15:7 GIDP:BB ratio, which is not good. 3/6 in SB attempts. Team is rapidly approaching having a 0% chance of reaching postseason.
Alfonso Soriano, CHC: Has played in 51 games. OBP of only .332. Has 191 fewer PAs than Jose Reyes.
Miguel Tejada, HOU: Hitting .207/.262/.333 in last 45 games. Grounded into 11 double plays. Unsure of his actual age. Hitting .243/.294/.378 on the road.
Brian Wilson, SF: 16 walks in 35 innings. 97 ERA+. 131st among NL pitchers in VORP.

Voting will be open until Monday at 4pm EST.

All-Overrated Team - AL

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 20:59:08 -0500

The final two All-Stars have been named - Evan Longoria and Corey Hart. But that got me to thinking who the most underrated and overrated players are. Later I'll post the underrated players, but for now, it's the Andruw Joneses of the league (note: he's not on here because everyone knows he has been terrible this year). AL 1B - Nick Swisher, CWS - Unfortunately, since Richie Sexson was released today, I can't put him here, but Swisher and .236 average hasn't exactly been what the White Sox were expecting when they traded for him. 2B - Robinson Cano, NYY - I've heard a lot of people mentioning him as a future batting title winner, but a .257 average isn't gonna do it. And he needs to be more patient with an OBP of .289, lowest among AL second basemen that qualify. SS - Edgar Renteria, DET - Once considered a formidable hitter, he is struggling with a .254 average and a weak .326 slugging percentage, ahead of only Jason Bartlett from the Rays amongst shortstops that qualify. 3B - Joe Crede, CWS - One of AL All-Stars on this list, mostly because his power numbers aren't that much better than anyone in consideration for the All-Star game but his .260 average is, well, average. Because he's an All-Star and, for example, Miguel Cabrera is not, he is overrated. OF - Jack Cust, OAK - He sure has power, but 110 strikeouts? Ryan Howard has 124 by comparison. Oh, and Cust is only batting .221. (Note: outfielders in no particular order) OF - Jose Guillen, KC - I know it seems weird that someone from the Royals is overrated, but Guillen was one of the five up for the final All-Star spot. A .299 OBP with six times as many strikeouts than walks means he didn't deserve it. OF - Alex Rios, TOR - He has a solid average, but he needs to be a run producer. 4 HRs and 38 RBIs aren't good enough for a no. 3 hitter. SP - AJ Burnett, TOR - This comes from the he's-got-great-stuff-but-he's-still-not-good department. He has 118 strikeouts, which leads the AL now that CC Sabathia left for the Brewers. But that 5.23 ERA is way too high, so the speculation of him being traded makes me wonder why a contender would want someone who's 9-8. CP - George Sherrill - As was the case with Jose Guillen, it's hard to put an Oriole on this because they're not well known but Sherrill is tied for second-most saves in the league yet has a 3.72 ERA.

The Mid-Summer Mistake: Lar-ry, Lar-ry

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:07:49 -0500

With FOX and Major League Baseball jamming the All-Star game down our throats (It's at Yankee Stadium! The Last One! So Historic!), it's time to look at who is actually going to play in this mid-season celebration of big name fan favorites. We'll examine the AL and NL voting for one position daily. Today: the hot corner...

VIDEO - Lou Piniella ejected by minor league umpire

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 09:45:12 -0500

Did Piniella deserve the ejection? Probably not. It's more of a case of a minor league ump filling in for an MLB ump that wanted to be a big guy for the day. Take a look at the video.

2008 Fantasy All Stars

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:23:03 -0500

While the AL is trouncing the NL in interleague play yet again, the NL has emerged as the Talent League, with the majority of elite fantasy players residing in the Senior of the two circuits. The Fantasy Baseball Hall of Fame takes a step back at the virtual midpoint of the season to construct All Star rosters in each league and to ask where are all the great players dead, in the heart or in the head?

AL MVP Talk in June

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:00:52 -0500

Yet another worthless mid-season list. But it's from the Muffin so read up, it's good for you. On to the AL MVP candidates:

1a. Josh Hamilton (TEX), .311 average, 19 HR, 76 RBI, 50 R
1b. Milton Bradley (TEX), .332 average, 15 HR, 48 RBI, 47 R, ML-leading .452 OBP and 1.079 OPS
1c. Ian Kinsler (TEX), .305 average, 12 HR, 47 RBI, 64 R, 19 SB

I saw the Hairy Guate implement the "#a" and "#b" strategy yesterday when putting together the NL Cy Young list. I'm going to steal that idea to pick a few teammates here. While everyone goes on and on about Hamilton's numbers (and they should), many seem to overlook the guys setting the table. Still, I give Hamilton the nod because of the absurd amount of RBI he has to this point. Besides, the Rangers likely aren't making the playoffs, so they're gonna need someone with eye-popping numbers a-la Alex Rodriguez in 2003 to bring home the hardware.

4. Alex Rodriguez (NYY), .332 average, 14 HR, 41 RBI, 40 R, 9 SB
There seems to be less focus on A-Rod this year, which probably has a lot to do with the fact that he didn't start on the torrid pace he did last year, and the Yankees struggles up to this point. But those numbers are still very impressive, and if the Yankees make a playoff run, A-Rod will be at the forefront. (I already filled my teammate quota for this list, but Jason "The Mustache" Giambi deserves some recognition - .271 average, 17 HR, 42 RBI, 39 R)

5. Francisco Rodriguez (LAA), 2.06 ERA, 31 saves, 33 K's, 35 IP, 1.17 WHIP
I know, I left him off my AL Cy Young list. But I think putting him on the MVP list is appropriate restitution, don't you? Besides - I'm not a big of relievers winning the Cy Young award, but has any one player been more valuable to the Halos this year than K-Rod? The Angels currently have just a +19 run differential (11th in MLB), yet find themselves 18 games over .500 (1st in MLB). That means the Angels are winning some tight games, and Rodriguez is the one walking the tightrope.

6. Carlos Quentin (CHW), .280 average, 17 HR, 56 RBI, 49 R
Carlos Quentin was the bright spot for an otherwise offensively-challenged ChiSox team to start the 2008 season. Pretty nice pickup for the White Sox seeing as they got the righthander for nothing more than first base prospect Chris Carter. And, no, not the X-Files guy. But a fall back to Earth, as well as the emergence of teammates Joe Crede and Jermaine Dye suggest Quentin may not even be the consensus most valuable player on his own team.

I don't put these guys on the list, mostly because their teams - with the exception of the Red Sox - just aren't good enough to warrant any serious consideration (I know it's an individual award, but that's just how things go). So here they are, the Honorable Mentions: Jose Guillen (.293, 13 HR, 60 RBI), Justin Morneau (.305, 11 HR, 59 RBI), Manny Ramirez (.292, 15 HR, 49 RBI), Kevin Youkilis (.304, 13 HR, 47 RBI), J.D. Drew (.314, 14 HR, 45 RBI), Grady Sizemore (.266, 17 HR, 41 RBI, 17 SB).

Oakland, Chicago Bring the Lumber

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 13:12:21 -0500

The A's and White Sox have been two of the biggest surprises in the American League this season. The two played long ball, and combined for 31 runs on Tuesday. Mike Gonzalez returns just in time to save the Atlanta bullpen, Seattle continues to flounder, Milton Bradley gets injured, and Chase Headley makes his debut.

MLB Stock Market - June 12th Edition

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 08:29:06 -0500

Screaming Sports' Phil Yoon runs down several baseball Bulls and several baseball Bears in the latest edition of Stock Market. Joe Crede? Oh yea, he's definitely a bull. Sidney Ponson? Ehhhh ... not so much.

MLB's Week 10 Hottest Hitters

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 12:28:22 -0500

#1 this week is brought to you by Milton Bradley. Not the board game company, but the Texas Ranger's DH who hit 6 HRs this week with 14 runs scored while knocking in 12 RBIs, swiping 4 bases and hitting .464 with an OBP of .615 That was more than 10 points better than the next big hitter from last week, Joe Crede from the White Sox whom they tried to trade in the off season.

MLB Weekly Sleepers - Week 11

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 09:00:54 -0500

Screaming Sports' Andrew Thibodeau breaks out his fourth edition of MLB Sleepers and runs down a quick list of potential needles (in a haystack - get it?) for the upcoming week. So, who could surprise some unsuspecting opponents this week? Only one way to find out ... click it.

The Daily Whine: NBA Finals on my mind

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 08:41:04 -0500

As someone who grew up worshipping Larry Bird and the '80s Celtics, the NBA Finals bring back some of the only good memories from my childhood. Am I as passionate now as I was then? You would think I'd have a better appreciation of a winning Celtics team, since it has been so long. But as you'll see from my Finals Preview, I haven't really grown up gracefully.

Time to trade CC?

Sun, 01 Jun 2008 12:41:01 -0500

The Plain Dealer's Terry Pluto makes an argument today that it may be getting to be time for the Tribe to make CC Sabathia a take-it-or-leave it offer and then ship him off if he doesn't sign. Pluto borrows some numbers reported by Jayson Stark to support Pluto's argument that if the Tribe continues to flounder on this current 11-game trip it could be time to get something for Sabathia if he is not ready to re-up with the Tribe. Here are numbers Pluto borrowed from Stark: "Stark wrote that in the wild-card era, only 13 of 104 teams that had losing records at the end of May went on to make the playoffs. ... But the real statistic is that only the 2005 Houston Astros came back from more than six games out to be a playoff team. So if the Indians come home on June 10 more than six games out, it's time to face reality and start trading off some veterans who will be free agents (Sabathia, Paul Byrd) and others not in the future plans. " --Terry Pluto While it's hard to give up on the year, it's also hard to argue with the logic. But there is way for the Tribe and their fans to have their cake and eat it too. What if, instead of trading Aaron Laffey or Jeremy Sowers and/or some other integral piece of the future, the Tribe trades Sabathia - a stud free-agent pitching in waiting for an equally studly free-agent hitter in waiting. Even with Sabathia gone, the Tribe's rotation would stack up well with the rest of the division (at least once Fausto Carmona returns) and they could get a bat they sorely need. At the end of the year, and assuming this big bat heads off for greener pastures, the Tribe would be no worse off than if Sabathia leaves them at the altar. I'm not saying I'm sold on this, but I am intrigued by the idea. And who might this stud hitter be? How about this rumor reported on the Braves Blast Web site Friday night? "There are a couple rumors here - one mentioned by the announcers during today's game involved the highest profile free agent on the team. Reportedly the Braves would send Mark Teixeira to the Cleveland Indians for starting pitcher C.C. Sabathia." While the Tribe has about six or seven guys on the roster now who could play 1B none of them offer a compelling reason not to trade for Teixeira - even though help at third or at a corner outfield position would be better. Whether the Tribe makes a pitch for Teixeira long-term is a question for later. For right now we'd be trading a big arm that is likely to leave at the end of the season and could conceivably be replaced from within for a big bat that is sorely needed now and is likely to leave at the end of the year. Given the current state of the offense, it makes sense to at least think about a trade something like this if not this exact trade, although Teixeira seems to be the most tempting name to fit this scenario. Here are some others from the full list of players who will be free agents at the end of the year and my comments on each one. There are plenty of other free-agents-to-be to pick from but they are not on teams looking for a rent-a-pitcher. * Joe Crede: not enough of a difference-maker with the bat; why hand Sox the division? * Jim Thome: do we want to go there?; why hand the Sox the division? * Bobby Abreu: Maybe if they "throw in" Robbie Cano * Manny: won't happen * Jeff Kent: no thanks!

Someone Has to Win the Central…Part 3

Fri, 23 May 2008 09:29:00 -0500

With the Central wide open, Tremendous Upisde gives us their thoughts on why the White Sox will win the Central Division this season.