June 14, 2006

The Rumor Mill

Now that the Yankees know with some certainty that Gary Sheffield will be sidelined until at least September, they’ll have to trade for a veteran corner outfielder with some power. They’ve been able to ride out Hideki Matsui’s injury because of Melky Cabrera’s patience at the plate and strong throwing arm in the field, but they can’t push their luck with another minor league replacement. Kevin Thompson is an excellent defensive outfielder, but he projects as a platoon or part-time player and simply doesn’t have the power ideally needed from a corner outfielder. The Yankees don’t have a veteran answer either, since Bernie Williams can’t be relied upon as an everyday player between now and September. Or at least he shouldn’t be…

There have been all sorts of rumors about players the Yankees will pursue, but let’s begin with the false candidates that have been championed in some corners of the mass media… Ken Griffey, Jr. makes little sense; he’s aging and injury prone, two qualities the Yankees already have in overstock. Pat Burrell and Bobby Abreu will cost two much in terms of prospects, specifically Philip Hughes, who has been placed in an untouchable container by the Yankee front office. Xavier Nady won’t happen either, if only because the Mets and Yankees rarely make meaningful in-season trades with each other… On the other hand, several names do make sense for the Bombers. David Dellucci has become a hood ornament in Philadelphia, where Charlie Manuel has wasted his abilities, and can be had at a reasonable price (Sean Henn and/or Matt DeSalvo). Buried in the Nationals’ organization, Ryan Church remains very much available, probably at the middling cost of a B-level pitching prospect. And then there’s the Diamondback duo of Jeff DaVanon and Shawn Green, either of whom could be cleared out to make room for a younger outfielder. Green would cost more for the Yankees in terms of talent, but he’s far from an untouchable and could be pried loose without having to surrender a talent like Hughes in return…

In spite of a rough stretch that’s included tough series with the Yankees and Red Sox, the Tigers still maintain baseball’s best record through the first ten weeks of the season. And since people around Detroit are starting to believe in this team’s staying power, we’re hearing all sorts of rumors about the Tigers making a trade for some veteran supplements (that’s players, not the other kind). Over the past week, various reports have indicated the Tigers would like to trade for a left-handed bat with power, in order to balance what is a heavily right-handed batting order (i.e Pudge Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez, Chris Shelton). The lack of balance has become even more problematic given the absence of the switch-hitting Dmitri Young, who remains on the disabled list and is now struggling with personal problems. The first name to emerge from the rumor mill is that of the Mets’ Cliff Floyd, who has hit well in recent days after a slow start but can become a free agent at season’s end. The other name being mentioned is none other than the Giants’ Barry Bonds, also a free agent and a player no longer capable of playing a respectable left field. While both Floyd and Bonds are probably longshots because their current teams are contenders, do not be surprised to see the Tigers sacrifice some young pitching from a deep farm system in exchange for a potent southpaw slugger…

While the Tigers believe that they are legitimate contenders to win the American League Central, the White Sox are becoming more and more concerned that they may be right. The White Sox have put together a shopping list of items that they need, with a right-handed set-up reliever and a center fielder topping the list. Along the latter lines, they’ve actually talked to the Phillies about re-acquiring Aaron Rowand, but Pat Gillick will probably want a lot in return after watching Jim Thome excel in Chicago. The White Sox would love to bring in someone like Torii Hunter, but it’s debatable whether the Twins will trade within their division, even when they’re out of contention. The Sox may have to settle for finding a player of Jay Payton’s ilk to platoon with Rob Mackowiak in center field. Sox management thinks Mackowiak can handle center field, but most scouts from other teams would disagree with that contention…

The Blue Jays are convinced—and rightly so—that they’re a good middle infield away from overtaking either the Yankees or the Red Sox. Knowing that Aaron Hill and Russ Adams aren’t the answers, the Jays continue to talk to the Devil Rays about Julio Lugo and the Angels about Adam Kennedy. Lugo would be a perfect fit at shortstop; he has good range on artificial turf and would give the Jays a needed basestealing threat. It’s debatable whether the Rays would take Shea Hillenbrand in return, though he would certainly be an upgrade over Travis Lee at first base…

The Jays were prepared to trade Hillenbrand to the Angels for Kennedy, but the Halos pulled out of the deal at the last moment. The trade would have solidified the Jays at second base while allowing GM J.P. Ricciardi to concentrate efforts on upgrading the team’s situation at shortstop. It’s a bit mystifying why the Angels rejected this trade, which would have cleared second base for top prospect Howie Kendrick while adding a much-needed power bat to the middle of the order. As is, the Angels have too many middle infielders and too few home run hitters, a situation that will have to be addressed by GM Bill Stoneman if the team is to re-enter the American League West sweepstakes…

Nothing will happen until later this summer, but the injury-riddled Dodgers will probably make a run at trading for Greg Maddux. That’s assuming the Cubs remain out of contention and the Dodgers stay near the top spot in the National League West. The Dodgers did talk to the Cubs earlier this week about Jerry Hairston, who could have offered some help at second base and in the outfield, but the two teams couldn’t get together. Chicago instead decided to take Phil Nevin from the Rangers in an even-up swap for Hairston, who was never one of Dusty Baker’s guys in Chicago…

Speaking of the Cubs, their decision to trade Hairston for Nevin indicates they’re not quite ready to throw in the towels on the 2006 season. There has been speculation that the Cubs will start a firesale soon, but that won’t happen for at least another three to four weeks. By the early days of July, the Cubs should know whether they’ve re-emerged as contenders—which is unlikely—or whether it will be time to part company with Baker as their manager.

Viva Valentin

How great is baseball’s unpredictability? On the verge of being released and watching his career come to an end just about a month ago, the ageless Jose Valentin is now making a case to be the Mets’ everyday second baseman. After watching Valentin look like he was ready for the Senior League in April and May, the Mets began to build contingency plans for a new left-handed hitter to come off the bench. They signed both Michael Tucker and Jose Offerman to minor league contracts, with the idea of bringing one of them up to New York if Valentin continued to struggle. With his career on the line, Valentin beefed up his resume, first off the bench and then as a regular. Valentin started every game at second base for a week and a half, continuing to show extra-base power at the plate and surprising deftness in the field. With Kaz Matsui reverting to his 2005 ways at the plate (before being traded to the Rockies) and Anderson Hernandez trying to find his batting stroke at Triple-A Norfolk, it is Valentin who is now making a rather incredible run at Comeback Player of the Year honors. And while it’s unlikely that Valentin can sustain his recent level of play on an everyday basis—he’s never been a regular second baseman, a position he hadn’t played at all since 1994—he has at the very least stopped the bleeding for the Mets at a position that has become a perennial problem.

Dynamic Duo

Thankfully the Yankees came to their senses and finally designated both Terrence Long and Scott Erickson for assignment this week. Still, it is absolutely dumbfounding that the Yankees, with all of the monetary resources at their disposal, resorted to signing and promoting washed-up players like Erickson and Long in the first place. While the wave of injuries has hit high tide in recent weeks in the Bronx, there’s simply no excuse to carry a player like Long, let alone play him regularly in the outfield. Like Omar Moreno in his latter days (Yankee fans from the eighties remember that), Long has no strengths: he’s a lifetime .270 hitter who doesn’t walk, hit for power, steal bases, or play particularly well anywhere in the outfield. As for Erickson, he hasn’t been a credible major leaguer since 1999—a span of seven seasons! And while Long seems like an agreeable fellow, Erickson hasn’t been a particularly good influence in the clubhouse dating back to his days in Baltimore. A few years back, he and Albert Belle served as the ringleaders of a protest against the Orioles having to play their traditional in-season exhibition game against their longstanding Triple-A affiliate in Rochester. Unfortunately, Erickson’s antics led to the discontinuation of the game, and sadly, the Players’ Association followed suit by not allowing major league teams to entertain their minor league affiliates in head-to-head exhibitions.

Still, we may not have seen the last of Erickson and Long in pinstripes. In spite of their poor performances, the Yankees have expressed hope that the two members of the dynamic duo can clear waivers so that they can return to the minor leagues and remain within the organization. Ughhh.

What’s A Symposium?

“Symposium” is one of those dreaded words that academic types use from time to time. I don’t know exactly what it means, but whenever I hear the word symposium, I think of Cooperstown in early June. That’s because the National Baseball Hall of Fame has sponsored an annual baseball symposium for the last 18 years, with baseball scholars from around the country gathering in our small village to talk baseball during the early days of June.

The Symposium gives baseball fans and diehards like myself a chance to watch numerous presentations on the game of baseball as it pertains to the American culture. A wide array of topics is explored, including baseball and racism, baseball and politics, even baseball and sexuality. The presentations—30 took place over the span of three days this past week—make you think about baseball in different ways; I’ve attended the Symposium every year since 1995, and there’s never been a year I haven’t learned something new about the National Pastime.

This year was no different. By attending presentations and engaging in some good dinner conversation, I learned a few tidbits at the Symposium that had previously escaped me. For example, I discovered that onetime National League batting champion Rico Carty signed contracts with 12 different major league teams while he was an amateur. Major League Baseball considered suspending him for the youthful indiscretion, but ultimately allowed his signing with the Milwaukee Braves to hold up. On another front, I learned that former Indians owner Vern Stouffer had actually agreed to sell his team to George Steinbrenner, only to have a few too many drinks, prompting a profanity-laced call to “The Boss” and a questionable decision to sell to local businessman Nick Miletti.

For all of the information that is dispensed and the stories that are told, the Symposium is not a headline event. As usual, there was no media coverage, and you almost surely won’t hear your local baseball broadcasters talking about it. But it remains a wonderful experience, one that gives diehard fans of the game a little something different to think about when discussing what happens to be new (or old) in baseball.

Publishers Clearing House

I received some good news from Westholme Publishing this week regarding sales of The Team That Changed Baseball. According to publisher Bruce Franklin, the book has virtually sold out its first printing, thus creating the necessity for a second printing.

Speaking of the book, here’s a trivia question regarding the 1971 Pirates. The first person to post the correct answer will win a pair of 1972 Topps Pirate cards. And aaaaway we go!

Which member of the 1971 Pirates was nicknamed “Buster?”

Card Corner

This 1966 Topps card was one of the first cards issued for the talented but enigmatic Alex Johnson, a onetime batting champion whose combative personality overshadowed his extraordinary abilities. Johnson didn’t last long with the Philadelphia Phillies, just like his short terms with the St. Louis Cardinals, California Angels, Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, and New York Yankees. Built like a bronze statue, Johnson possessed the kind of physical strength that earned him the nickname, “The Bull.” Just look at his bulging and bruised forearm in the photograph, as he appears ready to grind the two bats he’s holding into sprinklings of sawdust.

Sadly, Johnson’s repeated confrontations with teammates and the media also brought on such less complimentary names as “Awful Alex” and “Alex The Angry.” And some 40 years later, that is how Johnson tends to be remembered by earlier generations of baseball fans.

Johnson didn’t like conversing with sportswriters, whom he didn’t trust. He nicknamed one particularly heavy-set writer “The Oblong Jerk.” He felt even more strongly about another writer, once pouring coffee grounds into the gentleman’s typewriter. Johnson also criticized official scorers for intentionally tabulating his statistics incorrectly, such as failing to give him proper credit for runs batted in or outfield assists. “One of them in particular is Dick Miller,” said Johnson, referring to a writer in Southern California. “I don’t think he can even count when it comes to scoring me.”

Johnson’s personality quirks carried over to the playing field. Since he believed that his body would become “stale” if he used excessive amounts of energy, he didn’t hustle to his position in the outfield, making him the anti-Pete Rose. He also paced himself by failing to run hard on routine infield grounders and pop-ups, a habit that became especially pernicious in 1971. That summer, “Awful Alex” was benched five times by manager Lefty Phillips for a failure to hustle. Johnson also refused to partake in one of baseball’s time-honored rituals, refusing to shake hands with his teammates after hitting a home run. “I don’t want to waste time running up and down the bench,” Johnson explained, “shaking hands for everything that happens.”

Still, there existed another side to Johnson’s character. He once donated $500 to a fund earmarked for his former Angels teammate Minnie Rojas, who had been paralyzed in a horrifying car crash. Not wanting to publicize his charitable effort, Johnson denied making the contribution. Johnson also took time to attend the funeral of his former friend, infielder Chico Ruiz, who lost his life in a 1972 spring training car accident. The two had become estranged, often arguing with each other during a tumultuous 1971 season. Putting hard feelings aside, Johnson was one of the few ballplayers to attend the funeral service for Ruiz.

Based on the comments of friends and family, Johnson’s off-the-field persona was far different from the angry public image that he often portrayed. He could be generous, warm, and considerate. It’s too bad that Johnson didn’t show more of that side—his true character, perhaps—in playing a game that’s supposed to be fun.

Pastime Passings

Eric Gregg

(Died on June 5 in Philadelphia, PA; age 55; massive stroke): A colorful umpire during the 1980s and nineties, Gregg was both well-liked for his gregarious nature and criticized for his umpiring skills. As a fulltime National League umpire from 1978 to 1999, Gregg became popular with players and fans, in large part because of his outgoing, comedic demeanor. At games in Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, he sometimes danced with the “Phillie Phanatic” mascot in between innings. During the offseason, Gregg tended bar in his hometown of Philadelphia, often regaling patrons with baseball stories and his sense of humor. Though well-liked, Gregg drew criticism for being out of shape, allowing his weight at one time to balloon close to 400 pounds. He also came under scrutiny in Game Five of the 1997 National League Championship Series, when he called an incredibly wide strike zone in a matchup between the Atlanta Braves and Florida Marlins. The widened strike zone helped Florida’s Livan Hernandez strike out 15 batters in a 2-1 win for the Marlins.

Gregg continued to manage until 1999, when he became one of 57 umpires to tender resignations at the suggestion of Richie Phillips, the head of the Major League Umpires Association. The union strategy backfired, with Gregg becoming one of 22 umpires to lose their jobs permanently when Major League Baseball chose not to ask them to return to work.

Bruce Markusen is the author of the new book, The Team That Changed Baseball: Roberto Clemente and the 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates, just released by Westholme Publishing and now available at most major bookstores. The book tells the story of the team that featured major league baseball’s first all-black lineup. A freelance writer and broadcaster, Bruce Markusen serves as an advisor and consultant to museums that feature exhibits about baseball and other sports. To contact him about exhibit consultation, send an e-mail to
bmark@telenet.net.