Deep Left Field: Desparetely seeking David (Norman)

FOUND! Rare footage of Sam actually finding David.

We need David Norman back for eyes-own assessments of minor leaguers. Very few of my business trips take me to Danville or Myrtle Beach. Nonetheless, some notes of interest from the farm.

The Myrtle Beach Sun News confirms that three Pelicans have been promoted to AA-Mississippi. Top of the class is the Braves offensive version of Tommy Hanson. Jason Heyward is only 19 but was tearing up Carolina League pitching to the tune of 296/369/519. That .519 SLG% stands out considering his home park is notoriously pitcher friendly. Heyward projects to relieve Atlanta of our long Frenchified nightmare in RF come 2011. If he fares well in MS this year he could skip AAA-Gwinnett altogether. He’s that good.

Heyward is to Tommy Hanson as Freddie Freeman is to Kris Medlen. Overshadowed and rightly so, Freeman still projects to take over 1B in Atlanta about the same time Casey Kotchman goes free agent (2011.) Freeman posted a better than respectable 302/394/447, again in MB’s power-killing Coastal Field.

Pelican closer Thomas Palica gets the call to MS as well. The 21 year old was striking out a man an inning with decent K/BB rates, continuing his solid relief work from last year (in A-Rome.) With that said, he’s a minor league closer. Nothing projects until he’s striking out a man an inning in AAA, at the least.

Diamond Notes: Ned Colletti talks sabermetrics on XTRA Sports 1360 AM in San Diego:

“I think the sabrmetrics gets you interested. I think it gives you a chance to seek more information on somebody. But I’d have a hard time trading for a player or drafting a player that I really didn’t know what was inside his head and inside his heart and how he thought and how his priorities were set up and if he aspired for greatness and was willing to sacrifice. I’m not sure you’re going to get that off a stat sheet. But the numbers do tell part of the story. I think you have to have a mixture of all. Information is power, and as much information as you can get - whether it’s a number on a page or whether it’s a conversation with somebody - I think it adds to your decision-making process and helps you make better calls.”

Fanhouse: Cuban Pitcher Aroldis Chapman Defects

And pulling a Jose Osoria...he now ar Bob.

ESPN’s Jorge Arangure relays a report from a Cuban website that 21-year-old Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman walked out of the Cuban national team’s hotel room in Rotterdam, the Netherlands today and plans to defect to America to pitch in the major leagues in the near future. What happens next is all speculation at this point, but Arangure says Chapman is the best Cuban prospect since Jose Contreras and could command more than $30 million on the open market.

...Baseball America’s John Manuel relayed this quote from a scout in his story today about Chapman:

“There were rumors heading into Mexico that he wouldn’t be there because they were afraid he would defect, but he was there and was lights out. ... You’ve got honestly just one or two tweaks that could be made but he could go straight to the top of a big league rotation. He’s got a great body, definitely has high pockets, absolutely. He’s on top of the hitter, his release has extension, he’s got the ball coming out of there at 100 mph. He’s absolutely electric.”

Baseball America: Indians Prospect Faked Age, Identity

Major League Baseball has caught another high-profile prospect from the Dominican Republic misrepresenting his age and identity.

MLB’s latest catch is Indians shortstop Jose Osoria, who signed for $575,000 last year on July 2. Indians assistant general manager John Mirabelli confirmed that Osoria’s real name is Wally Bryan and that Bryan is 20 years old, three years older than he had presented himself. Bryan ranked as Cleveland’s No. 30 prospect entering the season.

“We still like his ability,” Mirabelli said. “We still like his talent. I’m not going to try to pretend there’s not a difference between 17 and 20. There certainly is in terms of projection, but the fact of the matter is he isn’t who he said he was.”

Bryan does look a lot older…

Scouting Mariners Draft Pick Dustin Ackley

Profiling the second pick of the 2009 draft…

Ackley does a good job of carrying his weight forward and moving his torso slightly in the opposite direction to create considerable torque.

He keeps his swing short — notice how the bat stays connected with the body as he strides forward — and uses a firm front leg as a base in which to turn on. His keeps his head still, making it easier for him to track the ball in from the pitcher’s hand.

Pleskoff: The View from Under the Big Straw Hat

Bernie Pleskoff was a Professional Scout for the Houston Astros and the Seattle Mariners.  He lives in Cave Creek, Arizona and writes for Rotowire.com

...People often ask me about the best baseball players I have ever seen.

...Here they are in order:

1-Roberto Clemente-pure poetry in RF for the Pirates.  He could hit for average, hit for power, run, throw with accuracy and with arm strength and field his position better than most right fielders I have ever seen.  The ball jumped off his bat.  He played with flair and the greatest of skill.  There really wasn’t anything this man couldn’t do on a baseball field.

6-Ted Williams-I did get to see Williams play at the end of his career.  He had a tremendous, very disciplined swing.  He was the supreme contact hitter with power.  Bat speed and selectivity were the keys to his success.  He got just enough loft in that swing to carry the ball over the fence.  He is best known as a great hitter, but he could really do it all.

11-Omar Vizquel- No list of mine can be complete without the name of this great defensive shortstop.  He could make plays other middle infielders only dreamed of.  My favorite?  Scooping a ball up bare handed, planting his feet and just getting the runner at first by a step.  Or how about going to the hole, planting his feet and barely getting the runner with the gun he called an arm.  And how about the way he could smoothly glide behind the second base bag and without planting his feet fire a strike to first to get the runner!  He did the same thing day after day, game after game.  Simply the best!  (Note:  Alcides Escobar of the Milwaukee organization is showing some of the same defensive qualities as Omar.  While I doubt lightning can strike again, he could be a very good shortstop).

Lives in Cave whatever is correct…

Over the line, Smokey!: Kershaw watch, part 2

Koufax as of 10/15/57, age 21y 9mo, Kershaw as of 6/26/09, age 21y 3mo.

Koufax IP 205.2 W 09 L 10 H 182 ER 91 K 182 BB 108
KershawIP 190.1 W 10 L 10 H 171 ER 85 K 183 BB 99

Koufax ERA=3.99, WHIP=1.41, K/9 innings=8.0
KershawERA=4.01, WHIP=1.42, K/9 innings=8.7

If you don’t think that’s spooky, you’re not paying attention.

In other Dodgers news, Cory Wade was optioned to Triple-A to allow Eric Milton to start on Sat.

True Blue L.A.: Will Rafael Furcal Ever Steal Bases Again?

This season, Furcal has four steals in 65 games.  The same as Andre Ethier.  Fewer than James Loney, Russell Martin, and Orlando Hudson.  Furcal has been caught four times too, so his success rate is the worst among all Dodger regulars.  Even Casey Blake (two for three) has been better in this regard!

I understand the stolen base attempt isn’t always the wisest choice, given how precious outs are, but I find them aesthetically pleasing.  The stolen base is a huge part of Furcal’s game, and as of now it is essentially absent.  I miss the old Furcal (or, perhaps I miss the “young” Furcal).  If asked to choose the priority of Furcal improvements, I would choose for Raffy to start hitting better, but the wheels have been missed too.

Maybe if we notice an increase in Furcal stolen bases, it is a sign of returned health and could lead to a turnaround at the plate.  Maybe its a chicken/egg thing, but either way, I’m ready for Furcal to be a speed demon once again.

Dave Cameron: Juan Pierre Is Not Hot

And it’s true, Pierre’s performed admirably well - his .327/.384/.424 line while playing quality defense in left field adds up +1.5 WAR in 240 plate appearances, or about a +3.75 win pace over a full season. If he played that well all the time, he’d actually be worth his contract.

But, of course, Pierre doesn’t play that well with any kind of consistency. And he hasn’t sustained that kind of pace this year, either. Here’s his 2009 season, broken into two chunks.

April 8 - May 28: 133 PA, .407/.470/.542
May 29 - June 24: 107 PA, .232/.276/.283

The first half of Pierre’s season, he hit like a Hall of Fame candidate. In addition to his usual batch of singles, he had 13 extra base hits and drew more walks (12) than strikeouts (10). It was a tremendous stretch of hitting for anyone, much less a guy with a checkered track record like Pierre.

The more recent chunk, however, is more what we’re used to seeing from the guy. No power, few walks (just four, compared with 10 strikeouts), and the ball has stopped finding holes. For the last month, he’s been a sinkhole, making outs in bunches and doing little to nothing to help the Dodgers win.

SOURCES: YANKEES SIGN DOMINICAN CATCHER GARY SANCHEZ FOR $2.5M (RR)

According to several connections in the Dominican Republic, the Yankees and catching prospect Gary Sanchez have agreed to a $2.5 million deal.

Sanchez, 16, isn’t eligible to sign until July 2, but the Yankees’ dogged pursuit of the right-handed hitter has resulted in him wanting to sign with the club.

According to a Yankees source, who didn’t confirm or deny the agreement or money, nothing is guaranteed until a contract is signed.

“He is a big kid with a big arm,” a Latin American talent evaluator for an NL team said of the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Sanchez. “I would like to have him, but $2.5 million is a lot of money. He has a thick body. He is a real good hitter, but he doesn’t hit like Jesus Montero.”

... The Yankees are also interested in shortstop Miguel Angel Sano.

“If he is 16, I have never seen a 16-year-old with that type of body,” the scout said of the 6-foot-3 Sano.

Thanks to Barnald, With That Type of Body.

L.A. Times: Kurt Streeter: Count quality, not pitches

Yes, there’s a gray area here. There’s an art to when a pitcher should be pulled that takes into account his history of injury, how smoothly he has progressed through a game, how well he rebounds from tough games. I just worry that in too many cases the art is being tossed by the wayside. Hard numbers hold too much sway.

Larry Bowa agrees. The Dodgers’ third base coach, famously tough, sneered when asked about pitch counts. “I don’t like ‘em,” he said, noting that he’d make some exceptions for young players and whippet-thin ones. “This stuff is hurting the game. These guys get to 100 pitches and they start looking for help. They don’t know how to pitch out of a jam or bring home the win.”

Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt hardly hid his thoughts either. He called this a problem deeply woven into modern baseball, one that’s awfully hard to stop at the major league level. “You get guys like Chad Billingsley and Clayton Kershaw and they’ve been on a pitch count since the minors,” he said. “They’re 24 and 25 and it’s hard to get them off it.”

Things won’t ever go back to the way they used to be, nor should they. But Honeycutt said baseball can move in a more balanced direction if jolted by a successful team that goes against the grain. Down in Texas, in his second year as president of the Rangers, Ryan is trying to do just that. His mantra, from the minors on up: toss the pitch counts to the side—let the pitchers show their stuff.

Said Honeycutt: “You’ve got to have a guy like a Nolan Ryan saying ‘enough of this stuff, there’s no reason in the world these guys can’t go 120 pitches. No reason at all.’ A guy like Ryan, maybe he can shock the world.”

True Blue L.A.: Baseball America Number One Prospect - Not all it’s cracked up to be?

Lot of misses in that group. The 1990’s are represented by many all - star seasons but the 2000 decade is sorely lacking in star power. Josh Beckett, Joe Mauer are so far the only above average players in the group with a couple of big zeros in Rauch, Baldelli, Francis, D Young, and maybe even Alex Gordon when you consider the lofty ranking.

I’d expect HOF inductions from Thomas, Manny, and Jeter. Tim Salmon, Jones, and Konerko had plenty of moments. Chavez was going great guns until the back killed his career.

Anyway, interesting list I came across on Baseball Reference.

The Baseball Analysts: Lederer: Q&A: Paul DePodesta

Important Things with Paul DePodesta.

Rich: How do rank attitude, hustle, and leadership when scouting players? And how do you go about valuing those characteristics?

Paul: It can be really difficult for me to warm up to a player who has a low motor, but that’s just my personal take and one that I often have to guard against when writing reports. I prefer guys who play with energy and appear to really enjoy being out there. The minor leagues can be a real grind - I can’t imagine enduring that playing schedule - so I worry about guys who don’t seem to have that passion. That said, that passion isn’t always illuminated by a player bouncing around the diamond, which is why I have to be careful.

Rich: Is “feel for the game” something that is at all quantifiable? Is it inherent in most players or can it be taught or gained over time?

Paul: I don’t have a good answer for that. Every player is unique, and sometimes we’ll find a player who has terrific instincts for one part of the game while really struggling with other aspects of the game. Some of that “feel” though can come from experience.

Rich: How does ability vs. signability come into play when lining up your draft board?

Paul: We try to line up our board without accounting for signability. When it comes time to make a decision, we have to factor in everything we know, but we don’t want signability to cloud our evaluations of a player’s ability.

NECN: Candid Buchholz itching to pitch in Majors again

Wasted bullets?

NECN’s Mike Giardi caught up with Buchholz at McCoy Stadium for a candid interview in which Buchholz makes his intentions clear—he wants to be pitching in the big leagues as soon as possible.

“Until I got to the big leagues is whenever I faced the problems that arose, and I feel like I’m more equipped with everything that I have right now—as far the pitches, and the mental aspect and I’m physically healthy—to be up there and helping that team. And if not that team, I want to be in the big leagues and I do want to go somewhere where I’ll be able to play and pitch every fifth day.”

..."There’s nowhere to go, and it’s sort of a logjam up there (in Boston),” Buchholz said. “Whenever they come to a problem, they seem like they find a way to fix it without me being in the picture. It is what it is—it’s frustrating at times.”

...Masterson has proven himself capable of handling pressure situations, having pitched meaningful relief innings in the 2008 Playoffs. Buchholz, though, has battled murmurs that he was immature last season—a potential cause of his troubles on the hill.

“Everybody goes out and has a drink at the bar after they pitch, it’s just holding that to a minimum,” Buchholz said.

..."Everybody knows that this game doesn’t last forever, for a pitcher especially,” Buchholz said. “I feel like I don’t want to waste bullets here.”

Thanks to Brunell.

L.A. Times: Jose Lima hopes his time will come again

On Friday, pitching in front of bleachers that were one-third empty, we found Jose Lima, the former All-Star known for creating wherever he goes a jocular, peppery, occasionally flaky and, to some, patently offensive way of being: Lima Time.

It has been 10 years since his best season, five since his memorable last playoff win with the Dodgers, three since he last pitched in the major leagues. But Lima, 36, hasn’t changed. Hoping against hope to make it back to the big leagues, he walks, talks and salsa-steps with the same ecstatic frenzy he’s always had.

He can also still hit the high notes. Before Saturday’s game, reprising a role he once had at Dodger Stadium, he sang the national anthem.

And Saturday’s pitcher? Yes, that was 40-year-old Hideki Irabu. In 1997, Irabu famously came to America from Japan, signing with the Yankees for $12.8 million. He was supposed to be the next big thing. But by 2002, after years of appearing unfazed by failure, the doughy Irabu and his 34-35 record were gone, never to be heard from by American baseball fans again. Until Saturday night.

How time changes things. Both men now make the league standard: roughly $2,000 a month. Instead of flying first-class charters and staying in five-star hotels, it’s now all about sitting cheek-to-jowl in coach, sleeping in Quality Inns and enduring five-hour bus rides to play rival Yuma.

Instead of throwing to the likes of catcher Jorge Posada, they throw to a guy whose best baseball days may well have come at Riverside Community College.

“We’re all here for the same thing,” Lima told me this week. “If you work hard and stay focused, no reason you can’t get picked up by some major league team.”

NYT: Rosenheck: Backing Up an Agent’s Pitch (RR)

Dan R’s latest..Keeping Score for Stephen Strasburg.

But while ranking college pitchers is fairly straightforward, converting their statistics to major league equivalents is much more challenging. No two programs have the same schedule, and only a handful of players have gone straight from college to the majors, meaning there is little data against which to make a direct comparison.

To overcome these obstacles, analysts are forced to resort to the quantitative equivalent of duct tape and super glue to estimate the quality of college competition. Most statistical indicators say nothing about the overall level of play in a league: if both the pitchers and hitters at one level are better than those in another, their performances will cancel out. But a few figures avoid this effect, such as error rate (which measures the quality of the fielders) and the frequency of hit batsmen (which measures pitchers’ control). These numbers, taken together, can provide a quick approximation of a league’s strength. They suggest that Strasburg faced opposition roughly comparable to that of a middling Class A minor league squad.

Using those sketchy parameters, Boras’s assertion that Strasburg is a major league-ready talent is more than just a negotiating ploy. According to Clay Davenport of Baseball Prospectus, had Strasburg been pitching for Washington instead of San Diego State this year, he would have compiled a 3.54 E.R.A. (which would rank 18th among qualifiers in the National League) and struck out 9.3 batters per nine innings (good for ninth). By contrast, Prior’s college numbers were consistent with a 3.89 major league E.R.A., and Weaver’s with a 4.51.

The Hardball Times: Colin Wyers: Abolish the minor leagues

The Fallout

But what would we lose along the way? Well, for starters, we probably lose the low minors. Right now, you can take a family of four to a game and get a meal and a few souvenirs for under $55. Minor league teams can charge so little for their product because their largest expenses are subsidized by their parent clubs. If that subsidy dwindled, so would the minor leagues.

Next to go? Training academies in Latin America. If the draft is abolished, teams would likely focus on domestic training academies instead. In other words, it’ll do to players from the Dominican, Venezuela and elsewhere what MLB did to Puerto Rico when it included them in the draft. Puerto Rican baseball has suffered for it, and so have Puerto Rican baseball players.

And Major League free agents will suffer, as they have to compete against a larger pool of players in the free agency market.

Maybe these things are desirable, but they are real consequences and cannot simply be ignored.

Rob Neyer: Let’s do away with the draft

The real problem is that nobody really knows what would happen if the draft were abolished. One could, with a great deal of rigorous research and analysis, make some educated guesses, I think. Sounds like a pretty good project for a sharp graduate student, or for one of those platoons of eggheads the Red Sox keep in a closet and occasionally throw a pizza to. But I haven’t seen that research. Have you? Humans are conservative by nature, and baseball men are really conservative. They like the draft, in part, because it’s what they know.

And second, Pinto’s making a moral argument. He’s not alone. A lot of people think that when you essentially force someone to play for a particular team, you’re depriving him of a fundamental liberty. I suppose that if the five biggest Web sites conducted a draft and I got stuck writing for a site I didn’t like for a salary I felt unjust, I would have a pretty big beef.

Gee. When I put it like that to myself ...

Sox draft Michael Yastrzemski

Someday in the distant future, there might just be another Yaz in the Red Sox outfield.

In the 36th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft this afternoon, the Red Sox selected St. John’s Prep (Danvers) outfielder Michael Yastrzemski.

The last name, of course, isn’t just familiar in New England. It’s legendary. He is the grandson of Red Sox icon and Baseball Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski.

Thanks to Crumbs.

Posnanski: Why the MLB draft simply doesn’t work as a television spectacular

Uhh...could it be that having R. Budd as gorified award presenter makes dullen’ Bill Cullen look like a regular Asadata Dafora on stage?

So, this year, for the first time, they tried to make the First Year Player Draft a television spectacular. They broadcast it in prime time. Commissioner Bud Selig came out to the lectern every few minutes to make a dramatic reading of a name he clearly had never seen before. Then, some baseball analysts talked for a few minutes about that name, and how great that name would become, how that name had 60-power or three-plus pitches—scout talk—and everyone came to the inevitable conclusion that the name would really help the team in the future. Yes, it’s a familiar formula.

Only ... the whole production didn’t work at all, at least for me. To be fair, this isn’t anyone’s fault—not even Bud Selig’s. The baseball draft simply doesn’t make any sense as an event because:…

...And that might be the biggest reason all this new hype for the baseball draft is probably doomed. The baseball draft is more about disappointment than triumph, more about failure than success. If the averages hold up, maybe five of the players taken in the first round will have reasonable big league careers, play in 1,200 games or so. Maybe one or two pitchers will win 100 games in the show. A couple might become big stars. Maybe.

In other words: It’s risky to hype ANY baseball draft pick, much less do a big show about the whole thing. It reminded me that a few years ago, the Kansas City Royals took a fast and promising outfielder named Chris Lubanski with the fifth overall pick in the draft. And after he signed, he took a little batting practice at Kauffman Stadium, and our dear friend Art Stewart—one of the great baseball men ever—walked around gushing: “You will remember this day for the rest of your life.”

It’s six years later, and Lubanski has not yet had a single big league at-bat. He’s hitting .308 in Omaha, and maybe he will get a chance. Maybe not. Either way, Art Stewart was right: I haven’t forgotten that day.

Jeff Passan: Baseball world goes gaga for prospect hype

Why, Ryan Braun and Evan Longoria(notes) were immediate stars. How could Beckham go hitless in his first 10 at-bats? Or Wieters still not have a home run? Or McCutchen dare go hitless in a game? Or Hanson shut down Milwaukee in the first inning, strike out the side in the second and then implode with Braun hitting a pair of two-run home runs?

“All those guys are great players, and they’re going to bring a lot to this game when they settle in,” McCutchen said. “It’s a new regime coming in. I think we’re going to help keep the game going and bring excitement and fans.”

Never mind McCutchen’s delusions of grandeur. He’s 22. He grew up in a baseball culture whose fans and media deified him as a teenager, the way basketball has long done with its prime talent. He saw his every accomplishment broadcast to a frothing group of Pirates followers, the same ones who have to be so confused by this all: 17 straight losing seasons, and they’re trading a player in McLouth they had developed and locked up to a team-friendly contract, for … three more prospects.

McCutchen is an innocent in this, a product of the system more than a cause. Baseball doesn’t see any issue with it, either, so long as the product blossoms, interest jumps and relevancy remains. It’s not like anyone can amend this. Pandora ain’t the sort to change her mind.

So get ready to hear about Jason Heyward and Madison Bumgarner, Josh Vitters and Mike Stanton. Prepare to learn everything possible about Stephen Strasburg, who’s a lock to get at least $20 million from Washington as the No. 1 pick in Tuesday’s draft.

They are the next wave of heroes who haven’t done anything particularly heroic. Oh, well. That’s how it goes. And it’s something for which no one in baseball seems too terribly eager to apologize.

SNY: Berg: Notes from the Minors: On Buffalo, Binghamton, Buttzville and beyond

With the coming of Josh Thole began the part of my life you could call my life on the road…

We just missed seeing the newest B-Mets, stud pitchers Brad Holt and Jenrry Mejia, but we did catch a double from prospect Josh Thole. Thole played catcher in high school but primarily played first in the Mets’ system before moving back behind the plate in 2008. Thole can hit, but some, including my colleague Toby Hyde, have wondered if Thole’s defense will improve to the Major League level.

I’m no scout, and one game wouldn’t be an adequate sample even if I were, but I know that Thole has thrown out 34 percent of baserunners this year, the same rate as the Major League Mets. I recognize that’s not nearly all that goes into defense behind the plate and that Double-A runners are probably more likely to be caught on the basepaths, but it’s got to be a good sign that Thole’s not embarrassing himself back there. At some point, it seems likely that the number of runs Thole’s bat provides could outweigh the number of runs his defense costs. He doesn’t hit with a ton of power, but his .419 on-base percentage and history of impressive plate discipline bode well for his future.

Beyond the Boxscore: Kalkman: Interview With John Sickels & Open Draft Day Discussion Post

As the young men move out into the battle zone of the ML Draft...Sky pilots an interview with Sickels.

BtB: Are there any prospects where there might be a divide between scouts and statheads?

John Sickels: They line up more than you’d think. Scouts have been higher on Cameron Maybin than a lot of statheads, who have worried about his strikeouts and low line drive tendency cutting into his power production. That would be one example. Statheads like Jaff Decker more than traditional scouts do, though even traditionalists respect his bat. They just worry about where he will fit defensively. Pre-season, some statheads (including me) were really worried about Mike Stanton’s strikeout rate, while scouts focused more on his physical projection and his youth. Stanton has really improved his plate discipline this year and looks to be a favorite of both camps now. Again, the differences aren’t as strong as they were 15 or even five years ago.

BtB:How will Pitch f/x (and soon Hit f/x) affect the accuracy, and cost, of scouting?

John Sickels: Honestly, I haven’t thought a lot about this yet. It’s been in the majors so far, and frankly when a player gets to the majors and graduates out of rookie status, I start to lose interest in them since I focus mostly on the minors and prospects. When a rookie gets to the show, I’ll look at his Pitch f/x stuff, though if he still has rookie status the data set is usually limited. What I really want is Pitch f/x for the minors. Then we can answer that question.

L.A. Times: Baseball draft is in need of reform

It comes as little surprise, then, that owners covet a bonus scale, with each draft pick receiving a specified amount.

The NBA has one. The first pick in the June 25 NBA draft gets a contract for $4.15 million next season, the second pick gets $3.72 million, and so on, with a bonus of up to 20%.

“You have some cost certainty, but, frankly, that is not the biggest benefit,” said Rob Manfred, baseball’s executive vice president for labor relations.

“The biggest benefit is restoring the integrity of the draft. If you know Round 1, Slot 1, is going to cost you X dollars, you have no motivation to do anything other than take the best player.”

The owners proposed slot payments for draft picks in the last two rounds of collective bargaining; the union rejected the proposal each time.

The commissioner’s office since has circulated an annual schedule of bonus recommendations for each draft slot and leaned heavily upon clubs to play along. Not all do.

Pitcher Rick Porcello, who starts against the Angels today, fell in the 2007 draft much as Weaver did in 2004. The Detroit Tigers snapped him up with the 24th pick, paid him more than three times the recommended slot value and happily put up with the venting of Commissioner Bud Selig.

The Weaver and Porcello cases are not isolated. Even the union does not argue that the draft works to deliver the best players to the worst teams.

Costello: SCOUT SAYS BIG PAPI’S FINISHED (RR)

and Costello Meet the Invisible Man.

Big Papi has been Big Floppy for Boston this season. As the Yankees head to Fenway this week, the biggest question about their rivals is: What has happened to the once-mighty Ortiz?

..."He’s a 40-year-old man who can’t play anymore,” one scout who has seen him said. “He’s back to the guy he was eight years ago when you could blow fastballs by him inside.

. . . To extend, he has to cheat [with his swing]. When he cheats, you can get him with off-speed pitches.”

The theories on Ortiz’s descent are plentiful. They range from physical (he never recovered from wrist and knee injuries), to strategic (he misses Manny Ramirez batting behind him), to mental (he’s got no confidence), to visual (he said he plans to get his eyes checked), to pure speculation (he’s older than his stated age of 33 or he’s no longer using steroids).

“The chances of his birth certificate being accurate are zero,” the scout said. “That’s both birth certificates. Remember, he was David Arias [when he played in the minor leagues for] Seattle.”

MLB: Nats hope Strasburg isn’t this year’s Bane

This might be worthy of a roundtable discussion.

Introducing Eddie Bane, walking cautionary tale.

“I never thought about it much like that,” said Bane, taking a break from preparing for his sixth Draft as scouting director for the Los Angeles Angels. “I don’t mind at all if that’s what it is.”

Bane was as dominant a college hurler as there was. His name dots the NCAA record books. He had a 0.99 ERA as a sophomore and went 15-1 as a junior. He was 1973’s version of Mark Prior, Jered Weaver or, dare it be said, Stephen Strasburg. He went straight from the College World Series and into the Twins rotation.

“I went from striking out Dave Winfield at Minnesota at a College World Series game—that played pretty well in Minnesota—threw a few bullpens in Minneapolis and they told me I was starting July 4. Quite honestly, if every team made as much money off their first round pick as the Twins did off me, they’d be doing very well. It was the biggest crowd they ever had at [Metropolitan Stadium].”

Jim Bowden Breaks His Silence On 9NEWS NOW And WUSA9.com

Gonzalez was a 16-year old prospect out of the Dominican Republic that Bowden signed and paid a remarkable bonus of $1.4 million. There was only one problem: Gonzalez and his Dominican handlers lied about his age and identity. His real name is Carlos Lugo. He wasn’t 16, he was 20. Its a fact, which had the Nationals known, would have severely decreased his value.

“Our people in the Dominican didn’t find it out. MLB didn’t find it out. The government didn’t find it out,” Bowden explains. “Sure it was embarrassing. Absolutely.”

At the same time, Bowden was part of an investigation by the FBI looking into allegations he and other baseball executives had skimmed money from the signing bonuses paid to Dominican prospects.

“There’s just no truth to it,” Bowden insists. “I don’t know where it all comes from.”

With both of those scandals originating in the Dominican Republic, some say more diligent oversight by Bowden of the Nationals’ operations in that country might have nipped some of the problems in the bud. But Bowden admits in his 5 years with the franchise, he had never once stepped foot on Dominican soil.

“I sent our top executives down there to oversee it and at no time did I ever come back with feedback from them that there were any problems,” Bowden explains. “In retrospect, if I had to do it again, would I go down there? Of course I would NOW. But 20-20 hindsight is easy after the fact.”

Thanks go to Shysterball for the link.

ESPN: Sources: Braves eyeing Penny

Atlanta is one of the teams in conversation with the Boston Red Sox about veteran right-hander Brad Penny, according to sources, at a time when the Red Sox have been doing their own research on Braves right fielder Jeff Francoeur.

Crystal ball: Projecting the first round | MLB.com: News

With just a few days remaining before the start of the First-Year Player Draft, the first-round picture should be getting much clearer, right?

Not so much.
...
1. Washington Nationals: Stephen Strasburg, RHP, San Diego State
Was, is and will continue to be the top guy.

2. Seattle Mariners: Dustin Ackley, 1B/OF, North Carolina
There’s not enough information to change this pick, though there was some buzz that the Mariners were backing off of him. If that’s the case, Aaron Crow still seems like the best bet.

3. San Diego Padres: Mike Minor, LHP, Vanderbilt
Still the same debate of college pitcher vs. high school athlete (Tate). There could be some discussion between Minor and Crow here, and it could go either way. But Minor remains the choice for now.

4. Pittsburgh Pirates: Aaron Crow, RHP, Fort Worth Cats
The Pirates would love it if the Mariners and Padres passed on Ackley and he dropped to them, something that now sounds to be at least a remote possibility. The other choices are the same, with Grant Green potentially in the mix if they want a bat and Ackley’s gone. Other college pitchers in the mix could be Alex White or Kyle Gibson, though that seems unlikely now, and there might be a high school pitcher or two who could sneak up here.

5. Baltimore Orioles: Zack Wheeler, RHP, East Paulding HS, Dallas, Ga.
No change here as of now, with pitching the name of the game. Jacob Turner and Wheeler are still in the high school mix. Green might be the bat who’s still being discussed as well. Word was that Wheeler went to Baltimore for a meet up and there was talk that the O’s and college pitcher Alex White’s agent spoke about his signability. California high school right-hander Matt Hobgood was also reportedly planning to meet with the Orioles, but there isn’t enough definitive information to go in that direction now.

Meet Tommy Hanson, Your New Atlanta Braves Starter

Breaking down all things Tommy Hanson, who makes his major league debut this Saturday....

When Tommy Hanson is on, he’s almost unhittable. He’s able to pin-point his mid - upper 90’s fastball on the black. He uses all four quadrants of the strike zone instead of limiting himself to one or two spots. He toys with hitters, mixing his pitches in-and-out of the strike zone. He’ll throw his breaking ball in the dirt to change the eye level of the batter before blowing him away with a fastball up in the zone.