Norwell grad Jarrod Parker’s working his way up

I get up at seven, yeah
And I go to work at nine
I got no time for livin’
Yes, I’m workin all the time

Professional pitching stats: 6 starts, 3-1, 1.05 ERA, 25 2/3 IP, 22 hits, 3 ER, 4 BB, 21 K

Pen fails, Cubs sweep D-Backs

The Diamondbacks bullpen handed over a late-inning lead for the second day in a row as the Chicago Cubs rallied for two runs in the seventh and two more in the eighth to complete a three-game sweep with a 6-4 win on Sunday at a cold and windy Wrigley Field.

Some regression to the mean was expected for this bullpen, but does it have to come all in one weekend? (AZ pen gave up 11 ER in the 3 game series)

Micah Owings in Context

But it’s more fun to take him out of context.

Highest Career OPS (min 75 PA):

Babe Ruth 1.164
Ted Williams 1.116
Lou Gehrig 1.079
Micah Owings 1.056
Barry Bonds 1.051
Albert Pujols 1.041

While this isn’t necessarily a candidate for inclusion in the next edition of How to Lie With Statistics, setting the bar at 75 PA is just the tiniest bit misleading. Still, that’s pretty heady company, and there’s no denying that Owings is an excellent hitting pitcher. With the help of the amazing BaseballReference.com Play Index, I pulled up a couple of other charts that put Owings’ accomplishments in a bit more context:

Piecoro: D-Backs’ calculated approach to steals

It’s not just a fluff piece - there’s a lot of interesting tidbits about the process a major league team goes through to evaluate their running game.

Players recite the need to have at least a 75 percent success rate, and their extreme selectiveness of when to run seems to have an almost scientific feel.

“We want the reward to outweigh the risk,” Gibson said…

General rule of thumb: Even the fastest of Diamondbacks’ runners probably won’t be stealing much on pitchers whose time to the plate is 1.3 seconds or less or on a catcher who needs much less than two seconds to deliver a strike to second base.

That’s a combined time of 3.3 seconds for the club’s best base stealers. But even then, times aren’t everything.

ESPN: Keri: Give some credit to early architects of D-backs, Rays

Raw panic gripping the baseball world!...Joe Garagiola Jr. and Chuck LaMar sightings!

When Byrnes took over as the Diamondbacks’ general manager in October 2005, he inherited a team in bad shape. Arizona was coming off two straight losing seasons, including a 2004 team that posted the worst record in franchise history—and one of the worst in recent MLB history—at 51-111.

Backed by an aggressive ownership group led by Jerry Colangelo, GM Joe Garagiola Jr. was the team’s first GM and had whiffed on many personnel moves leading up to that point, including several big-ticket contracts larded with deferred compensation that plunged the team into debt. The front office had also misfired on a number of trades, dealing away veteran stars too early (Curt Schilling), shipping out top young talent before it ripened (Brad Penny) and acquiring past-their-prime former stars who were nearing the end of the road (Shawn Green).

...The list of names below shows that of the D-backs’ top 29 players who’ve seen time at the major league level or are on the disabled list awaiting return, 14 were drafted, traded for or otherwise acquired by Byrnes (15 if you count the new GM’s signing of Justin Upton after a long wait at the end of the previous regime). The list includes three-fifths of the starting rotation, three of the eight starting position players and a flurry of great talent snagged in December 2005, right after Byrnes’ hire. Those are impressive totals, given the new guy’s only been at it for two and a half years.

Still, save some acclaim for Garagiola, whose scouting and player development staff drafted and developed the two best players (year-to-date) on the current D-backs squad (Cy Young winner Brandon Webb and likely All-Star Conor Jackson), future MVP candidate Upton and several other key contributors.

Pitching Mechanics: Max Scherzer

Driveline Mechanics does a voiceover video analysis of Diamondbacks’ prospect Max Scherzer.

Madden: D-Backs-A’s pitching megadeal works for both teams

In between delusional champagne toasts to Norma Zimmer...Madden finds time to spit out another column.

These are giddy times in Arizona and Oakland, where, with the youth-filled Diamondbacks and Athletics, it’s baseball as it oughta be - and the respective GMs, Josh Byrnes and Billy Beane, are justifiably patting each other on the back for their blockbuster winter deal that already has had significant impact for both clubs.

Let’s, for a moment, revisit that Dec. 14 trade in which Beane reluctantly determined his small-market A’s needed of yet another major rebuilding job and opened up bids for his No. 1 pitcher, 27-year-old Dan Haren. Naturally, a lot of clubs called, but, in Byrnes, Beane knew he had the perfect trading partner - not just because the two were friends, but because Byrnes understood what Beane had to get for his best player. Even more importantly, Byrnes, like nobody else, also had the surplus of quality prospects to get it done.

“Josh recognized the fact that, in Haren, you had an All-Star starter with a good contract (signed through 2010 at approximately $5.5 mil per year),” Beane said by phone from Oakland the other day. “We both knew what Haren’s value was and Josh didn’t hesitate to give me what he knew I had to have back.”

Newsday: Mets feel right at home with 7-2 win over D’backs

[Billy] Wagner’s teammates earned a reprieve from their critical closer Friday by doing what they do best, which is pound the Diamondbacks in their own retractable-roof backyard.

Ryan Church homered, doubled and drove in three runs in his return to the No. 2 spot, David Wright also went deep and Jose Reyes finished a home run short of the cycle as the Mets beat Arizona, 7-2, for their 14th win in 15 games at Chase Field.
...
When approached Friday, Wagner grinned at the group of reporters. Asked if he regretted the comments [about Oliver Perez], Wagner flatly responded “No” and then seemed eager to move beyond them.

“I’ve done all the talking about that because, well, everything’s been said,” Wagner added. “It’s been taken care of.”

DBacks rally past Astros (Owings hits two-run, game-tying, pinch-hit home run)

Pitcher Micah Owings hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer on the first pitch he saw in the sixth inning to help the Diamondbacks overcome a rough outing by Randy Johnson for an 8-7 victory over the Houston Astros at Chase Field on Wednesday…

Reliever Joe Borkowski entered the game just before Owings stepped to the plate. Owings hit the first pitch for an opposite field home run to right field, scoring Stephen Drew ahead of him and tying the game at 7. Chris Young followed with a double and Eric Byrnes hit a single to center to make it 8-7.

It’s the moment of the season so far to cap off a nineteen win April.

Scherzer Impresses in Loss

No witnesses of Tuesday night’s game will be talking about the shaky start by Edgar Gonzalez, the Diamondbacks’ defensive miscues or their missed opportunities at the plate.

Not after Max Scherzer made his major-league debut.

Firing fastballs up to 98 mph, the rookie right-hander threw an overpowering 4 1/3 innings in relief, retiring all 13 batters he faced while dominating the Houston Astros in front of 20,241 at Chase Field…

Scherzer entered in place of Gonzalez, and it now seems likely that the club will flip-flop the pitchers’ roles, with Gonzalez moving into long relief and Scherzer getting a crack at pitching every fifth day.

Manager Bob Melvin seemed to half-smirk when asked about the possibility, saying it was too soon after the game to make a determination.

“I want him as a starter and so does everyone else, including him, and that is what we are working toward and we need him there now. There is no question about it, you don’t have a guy with a 100-mile-per-hour fastball and keep him as a set-up guy. You just don’t do that. You have to be an idiot to do that.”

Diamondbacks Promote Top Prospect Scherzer

What is it with the Diamondbacks bringing up top prospects in San Diego? First Chris Young, then Justin Upton, and today, Max Scherzer.

Yup, the Diamondbacks’ called up their top pitching prospect today and have him on the lineup card as being in the bullpen.

Yusmeiro Petit was apparently the one optioned to Triple-A Tucson. He wasn’t on the lineup card...................

Not sure I understand this move entirely if they’re going to leave him in their bullpen long-term, especially after he was starting to show that he just might be a good starter in the long run.

It appears the move was done in reaction to Micah Owings’ injury. Perhaps Scherzer is insurance in case Owings can’t start Friday? But if that was the case, why not let him start Sunday in Tucson? Did they not want to risk injury down there?..................

Regardless of the reason, this seems to make their pitching staff better; they really needed to find a way to get him into the majors considering the numbers he was putting up.

But I think it’s important that he continues to develop as a starter. They might need him in the rotation next year or maybe even later this year. Having him throw inconsistent innings out of the pen isn’t going to allow him to further develop his change-up and slider. It’s not going to get his innings total up to the point where he could throw 180 innings if he’s in the rotation next year.

Earlier than expected. Great day for Max. He is a really nice Kid.  I agree with the highlighted portion

Owings, Upton injured in Diamondbacks loss

Owings’ frustration was evident as he slammed his helmet in the dirt as he sat next to second and was examined by head athletic trainer Ken Crenshaw. Owings was escorted off the field and into the clubhouse, where he began receiving treatment immediately.

“A little stiff,” Owings said. “But I’ve been through plenty of ankle sprains and I’ve already started to get some work in here with the trainers. Ken’s one of the best, so I’m not really too worried about it.”

. . .

The D-backs tied the game at 7 in the seventh inning thanks to Conor Jackson’s RBI single, but their joy was tempered when the frame ended with Upton pulling up lame after trying to leg out a grounder to short.

“We’re not sure it’s a cramp or a strain or a pull yet,” Melvin said. “I’m not going to play him tomorrow, but we don’t know yet. It could be a cramp.”

Fortunately, these don’t appear to be serious injuries. I’d hate to see something like that hinder what is shaping up to be an outstanding season for the Diamondbacks or any team.  But with their hot start, the Diamondbacks can afford to be careful.

Ledezma plunks Conor Jackson for swinging too hard.

Post game host on Channel 4, Bob Scanlan got real fired up talking about Ledezma hitting Conor Jackson in the ribs after he swung so hard that he fell to his knees in the previous pitch.

“Can you swing any harder than that?  Come on now.  You can’t be swinging hard like that.  A message has got to be sent and Wil Ledezma does it.”

Ledezma hits Jackson in the ribs with the next pitch.

“Wear that!  I’m not for hurting people but at the same time you cannot have batters standing in that batters box swinging as hard as they possibly can and think that you aren’t going to send a message… He came in, he wasn’t head hunting, he went right for the ribs.  You know what?  You don’t like it Conor?  You know where to find me!

“You’ve got to send a message, not just to Conor Jackson but to that entire Arizona Diamondback ball club.  You want to swing hard like that?  Do it against the Dodgers.  Do it against the Giants.  Go ahead and swing like that against the Colorado Rockies, but you aren’t going to do it here against the San Diego Padres here in Petco Park.  Well done Wil Ledezma.”

The question was raised in the Lounge, how recent of an addition is this to baseball’s unwritten rules?  I’ve asked a few people if they’ve ever heard of this practice before this season and all have said no.

Nick Piecoro: [Justin] Upton shows he’s not all hype

Tim Brown agrees: In younger Upton, a star is born

From Nick’s article:

Rival agents believe that with his talent, he will get a deal north of the $31 million contract the Rockies gave shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, a record for a drafted player with less than two years’ service time. That’s if Upton signs after this season....

Industry observers also say they wouldn’t be surprised if Upton gets an unusually long deal because of his age, perhaps even eight years.

Show him the money!

FOX: Rosenthal - Baby Boss could cost Yanks their GM

If Cashman wished to stay east, he could replace Phillies GM Pat Gillick, who is expected to retire. Or, Cashman could return to D.C., where he attended Georgetown Prep and Catholic University, if the Nationals chose to replace Jim Bowden. Why, Cashman could even stay in the AL East if the Blue Jays dismissed J.P. Ricciardi, who has two years left on his contract.
...
So here’s the question: Is [Frank] Thomas finished?

“He looked like he was on rollerblades, sliding all over the box,” says a scout who saw him recently. “His balance was poor. His bat speed was poor. His approach was poor. He was only hitting changeups — that was the only ball he could get to.”

Still, scouts were saying much the same thing about Thomas, who turns 40 on May 27, in the early parts of each of the past two seasons. One GM says he finds it difficult to believe that Thomas no longer could contribute coming off a 26-homer, 95-RBI season.
...
The Diamondbacks, already loaded with young talent, are discussing how to proceed with right-hander Max Scherzer, who opened the season by pitching 17 scoreless innings at Class AAA, striking out 29 and walking only three. Club officials initially believed that Scherzer could emerge as an impact reliever this season, but want him to remain a starter for as long as possible. Scherzer represents insurance for the rotation if Randy Johnson fails to stay healthy or Doug Davis returns slowly from surgery to remove a cancerous thyroid.

God honors Sabbath; Padres to defeat Diamondbacks

In what some observers have termed “as setting a good example” God refused to act on behalf of his chosen team as the San Diego Padres scored nine runs to the Arizona Diamondbacks four on the 20th of April, 2008 A.D.

According to several Phoenix-based theists, God had determined in advance of the current baseball season that the Diamondbacks were the “chosen team”.  While many theologians had downplayed the possibility it is understood that the Supreme Being is indeed a baseball fan and has been known to take an active role in the proceedings for his own purposes.  (See Mets, 1969)

After observing the Diamondbacks win two games by a cumulative total of 19-3 the Holy One assuaged concerns among advisors by honoring his assigned “day of rest”.  While no direct connection was claimed more than a few noted that bereft of divine intervention the Arizona squad was thrashed quite handily by a team that before today’s game was last in the National League in both runs scored and home runs.

Though no comment was available from The Great Beyond, the visiting Pope Benedict did offer, “Ich bin ein anti-levski”.

MLB.com: Huber’s first homer propels Padres

Chances are Justin Huber won’t romanticize tales of his first Major League home run when he gets around to returning to his native Australia, but not because he didn’t think it was an important hit for himself and the Padres on Sunday.

“It’s pretty special… but I don’t see myself telling stories about it in 10 or 20 years,” Huber said. “No one (in Australia) knows who Randy Johnson is.”
...
But Huber’s first home run was clearly the highlight of the game for the Padres and a welcome sight for a team that had gone 106 innings without a home run until they hit two on Saturday.

“We think there’s a home run in our lineup,” Padres manager Bud Black said.

He just might not have thought Huber would have been the one to hit one off Johnson (0-1), who allowed six runs (four earned) on six hits with three walks in 5 2/3 innings.

Sherman: YOUNG CORE MAKES ARIZONA, NOT METS,TEAM TO BEAT IN NL (RR)

Hey, decrepit statistical set...stop dismissing the D’backs!

TheDiamondbacks and Mets made similar trades in the offseason by unloading multiple prospects to get an ace. Arizona landed Dan Haren from the A’s and the Mets obtained Johan Santana from the Twins.

Nevertheless, there is a huge difference in the aftermath of these deals. The Diamondbacks still had a strong farm system, a powerhouse actually if you stretch the meaning of prospects to include impact guys 25 and under. Meanwhile, the Met system was left with Fernando Martinez and “not a lot more besides him,” a scout who covers their system said. “I think the Met cupboard is bare. One guy is not going to make a difference. The rest of the team is decrepit. Omar [Minaya] is going to have to spend a lot of Mr. Wilpon’s money to be competitive.”

...And it is obvious Arizona is not rebuilding. In fact, in praising D’backs GM Josh Byrnes for doing “a fantastic job,” Brian Cashman said, “What I respect most about him is that he has a grasp on what I call the tortoise and hare. He is willing to be patient like a tortoise and develop his system to excellence. But when he sees unique opportunity, he jumps out like a hare as he did with Oakland for Haren. His ultimate goal is a championship, and when he sees an opportunity, he acts.”

AP: Streaking Diamondbacks beat Padres 10-3

Arizona has won the first two games of the series by a combined 19-3 and has outscored its opponents 112-56 this season. The Diamondbacks were outscored by 20 runs on their way to the NL West title last year.

Winning games has been OK but I’m really happy the Dbacks are taking care of that Pythag this year. It’s the moral victories that count.

Minor League Pay for Minor League Play

I’ve always laughed at people thinking that being a professional ballplayer means millions and millions of dollars for everyone.  While the money at the big league level is quite nice and comfortable, the minor leaguers have quite a different salary structure as they make their way to the big leagues.  Make no mistake the fortunes reached at the big league level is incredible, but it doesn’t go without some tough paydays along the way.

Regardless of the signing bonus received after the draft/signing, each player in the minor leagues has the same initial salary structure.  It is designed to pay players at different rates depending on what level they are playing.  For non 40 man players, the salary begins at $1100/month in Short Season/Class A.  Salaries in AA increase to $1500/month while AAA gets a jump to $2150/month.  We pay those salaries only during the 5 month season, so the paychecks for the players begin in April and end in the first week of September.

AJ’s blog fast becoming one of my favorites.  Anyone at all interested in the inner workings of minor league baseball will enjoy the information he is providing.

[Max] Scherzer still regularly setting them down

Tucson’s Max Scherzer doesn’t have anything in the win—or the loss—column so far this year. But the strikeout column is something else.

The incendiary right-hander amassed 11 strikeouts over five scoreless innings in his latest no-decision, the River Cats’ 4-3 victory over his Sidewinders.

Scherzer’s stat line after 3 starts in AAA:

3GS, 17 IP, 7 H, 3 BB, 29 K, 2.00 GA/AO, 0.00 ERA

“4 mil for a reliever? yikes.”

A natural righty, Stephen Drew bats from left side

PHOENIX—Not long after he joined the D-backs last summer, Jeff Cirillo found himself in the batting cage with shortstop Stephen Drew.

Cirillo watched Drew take some swings from the right side and then the left. The next time the D-backs faced a left-hander, Cirillo was surprised to see Drew swinging from the left side.

“I thought you were a switch-hitter,” he said to Drew.

Those who watch Drew are amazed at how well he swings the bat from the right side, but if they knew how he grew up, they’d be even more surprised with how well he hits from the left side.

Drew, you see, was born right-handed

Pretty interesting story how he became a full time lefty hitter. His career platoon splits are almost identical

.260/.324/.420 .744 OPS vs RHP
.268/.326/.414 .740 OPS vs LHP

Shea Hillenbrand’s Son Attacked by Lemur

They don’t look all that dangerous, but a few weeks ago a pet lemur went on the attack sending the son of a former major leaguer to the hospital. Former Diamondbacks player Shea Hillenbrand’s son was attacked and we are now hearing the 911 call from that attack. FOX 10’s Troy Hayden reports.

AZ Republic: Defense squanders Johnson’s debut

Two errors and a handful of other miscues allowed the San Francisco Giants to score five unearned runs en route to a 5-4 victory over the Diamondbacks on a chilly and windy night at AT&T Park.

[Randy] Johnson allowed three unearned runs in five innings, looking a lot like he did in his first start off of back surgery last year. At times, he looked like the Johnson of old. Other times, he looked like a pitcher still trying to find his form.
...
Johnson showed flashes of dominance. A slider in the first inning nearly hit the back foot of a swinging Aaron Rowand. He froze Rich Aurilia on an inside fastball for strike three and struck out Dan Ortmeier and Brian Bocock on high fastballs.

At times, however, his location was spotty, his stuff inconsistent and his velocity just passable, as he worked in the 89-92 mph range. But if last season is any indication, this just might be the beginning for Johnson as he works into shape.

Still, he was effective and likely would have pitched deeper had the defense been better.

Upton powers D-backs to 8th straight

Upton slammed his fifth home run of the season and collected two other hits Saturday as the Diamondbacks rolled to their eighth consecutive win, a 10-3 drubbing of the Colorado Rockies in front of 29,256 at Chase Field.

“Going into the season, I think he was the biggest question mark,” first baseman Conor Jackson said. “We didn’t know what he was going to do. He came up last year and kind of struggled a little bit, but the tools are there. It was just a matter of time. For him to be doing this at 20 years old? He’s going to have a long career.”

He’s not the only Diamondbacks hitter on a roll these days. That’s 72 runs in 11 games this season for Arizona, which is off to the best start in the majors (9-2) and a year after trudging along with one of baseball’s more dismal lineups now boasts the National League’s hottest offense.

They can’t possibly keep up this pace, can they?

“There are going to be times when things aren’t going to go our way,” second baseman Orlando Hudson said. “Right now, things are going good, so we’ll just ride the wave while it’s hot. Keep riding it.”

It’s more like a tsunami.

Player Spotlight: Mark Reynolds

A contact rate of 70 percent, a BABIP of .360, and an AB/HR of 19 (based on a 20 percent HR/FB and 38 percent outfield fly ball rate) would give Reynolds a .305 batting average. That is stunning even to me. I expected to see something closer to .270 or .280…

Given a 70 percent contact rate, a 20 percent HR/FB, a 38 percent outfield fly ball rate, and 500 at-bats, Reynolds would hit 27 home runs. A drop to a 65 percent contact rate would bring that down to 25 home runs. A relatively small increase in fly ball rate or an increase in at-bats could cause him to hit over 30 homers.

Psycho spy from Coors
Tries to steal your mind’s elation

Don’t worry, Rockies will hit again soon

Man, those Arizona Diamondbacks are sure easy to please.

They show up at Coors Field for the Rockies home opening series, sweep the three games, and, well, it seems like they should have been popping champagne.

All of a sudden they are puffing their chests, talking about how sweet revenge is, and proclaiming that the weekend in April was a payback for last October.

Yeah, right, winning three games in April alleviates the sting from the Rockies sweeping Arizona in the NLCS. Just exactly how much beachfront property did the Diamondbacks buy in Arizona?

Arizona deserves credit. It showed up, got to watch the unveiling of the NL pennant — that the Rockies won thanks to their sweep of Arizona in the NLCS. They witnessed the distribution of the NL champion rings — that the Rockies earned thanks to their sweep of Arizona in the NLCS. Then they put a damper on the Rockies celebration by sweeping the three-game series.

But to read and listen to chatter about revenge for last October?

Sorry. It doesn’t compute.

“It kind of sets the tone for the year for us,” said third baseman Mark Reynolds. “To come in and win three games in a row at their place — especially after what they did to us last year — feels good.”

How to you go from Reynolds quote to the strawman argument and bitter pill that this entire article represents?

News flash: This team looks really good

One of the Dodgers writers turned to me this afternoon, put a hand to the side of his mouth as if he had a secret to share.

“Kuroda,” he whispered, “picked the wrong team.”

The writer thinks this might be the best team in the National League.

Davis delivers for D-Backs

Some folks tend to try to make a hero out of just about anybody with a sad story to share or because of a setback that a person managed to overcome.

Doug Davis, though, doesn’t want to be hailed as heroic.

He’s just a man - a decent one at that - who happens to have cancer and doesn’t want to let down his teammates......

The left-hander, whose condition was diagnosed late in spring training, pitched five scoreless innings before allowing two runs in the sixth. He finished with seven strikeouts and tied a career high with two hits, including an RBI single, in collecting his first win of the season..........

Just thought I’d mention Davis has a .667 BA on the season and a 247 OPS+ Look out Micah Owings!!

EV Tribune: Bordow: Young batters on target in hitting the long ball

The Diamondbacks...also ready to outwit their opponents.

“We’re going to surprise people, I think,” Mark Reynolds said.

That may be hard to do, given Arizona won the NL West and advanced to the NLCS. But that was also the team that allowed 20 more runs than it scored.

This year, Arizona has outscored the opposition 40-19.

“It’s like Murphy’s Law,” Reynolds said. “With more time and experience comes confidence.”

Uh, Mark, Murphy’s Law says that if anything can go wrong it will.

“Oh. Well, you can edit that out,” Reynolds said.