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1. Meatwad Posted: February 03, 2006 at 01:09 AM (#1848399)Neifi should never, ever be let anywhere near a right-handed pitcher, and Hairston is Hairston. This team needs someone like Walker, who landed in their laps, and they're just going to piss him away.
And then I start to read about the Cubs. I mean, its freaking February, and I'm starting to get REALLY pissed off just because of what some rarely-updated Cubs blog says might possibly happen in April.
I never thought I'd say this, but maybe I need a djf style trial separation. It would be good for my health.
Oh, and in case any of the chicago-primate-lawyers read this, I'll probably be going to DePaul law next year.
Which leads to something I've been thinking for a while -- we know that Hairston was on the DL for part of last year, but am I wrong in thinking that the Cubs are just now saying that Hairston was hurt for *all* of last season?
If the Cubs didn't know that Hairston was hurt, they are being revisionist. OTOH, if they *did* know, why did they really want to trade fro him in the first place?
It isn't really helping me. I'm just as frustrated and still follow the papers daily. We'll see what happens when Opening Day rolls around -- that's when my discipline will be put to the test.
Oh, and in case any of the chicago-primate-lawyers read this, I'll probably be going to DePaul law next year.
Congratulations and good luck. I went to Loyola, btw.
Hope we see you in April.
Re Walker v. Hairston v. Neifi, I too would like to see a comprehensive projection -- or, better yet, a set of projections -- for each. I think it's *possible* that Walker could be 15-20 runs worse on defense, which would negate much of his offensive edge. Even if that's true, I think he has a valuable role to play, but it might not be as the everyday starter at 2B.
The difference is that Guillen knows that he was a crappy hitter. If the Cubs had Guillen the player, they would be penciling him in as lead-off hitter.
The story they seem to be floating is that Hairston had an operation on his ankle after the 2004 season and was only 75% healthy last year, although how surgery can improve lousy instincts escapes me.
Re Walker - I was surprised by reports from the Cubs Convention that the Cubs broadcasters, to a man, couldn't find anything positive to say about him. If they weren't just toeing the official line then it would seem there is a conviction within the club that Walker isn't up to the job.
I'd add that I wonder how much of this indifference or doubt is related to the two separate knee injuries Walker sustained last year? Is he expected to have less mobility this year?
One irony here being that a big plus for the Sox in '05 was finding a second baseman who could hit for a decent average and middling power. The Cubs already have one and aren't satistfied.
Frankly, I'm probably just focusing on the Cubs because we're hitting the yearly winter sports lull. I know all the good baseball blogs inside and out, so its the easiest thing to fill my free time with. Maybe I can learn all about the luge or Super G during the winter olympics. That could help.
and thanks for the encouragement everyone. The only thing I'm really worried about is moving back home for three years.
I think I said this somewhere else, but I get the feeling that Neifi is going to be starting somewhere and there's nothing we can do about it. Our options are either Cedeno/Neifi (ss/2b) or Neifi/Walker (ss/2b). Maybe because Hendry likes Cedeno so much and knows that Dusty will play Neifi ahead of him, he feels like he has to get rid of Walker. Now, that's all purely Moses speculation.
As for Walker being the super-sub, I think that's the role Hendry wants for Neifi. I have a question, has Dusty ever had a strict platoon on one of his teams? I can't think of any on the Cubs (even though there's been too many opportunities to count), but what about in SF? Does Dusty feel too much loyalty to a "starter?"
Depends on how old he is. Choi/Karros started out as a platoon, but we all know how that turned out.
Perez is terrible from both sides of the plate, although he does have more power when batting right-handed. Walker, as would be expected, has historically hit significantly better against righties (last year he put up flukily good numbers against LHP). A Walker/Perez platoon would actually be alright. I haven't seen any evidence that Dusty has any aversion to platoons on the whole, so if he is willing to let Cedeno play every day, this is a possibility. Hairston is all over the place on platoon-splits over the past few years.
BTW, I'm sorry the posts have been few and far between - with the slow time of year and a busy work schedule recently, the Cubs have been off my radar a bit. Things should pick up in the very near future.
Right -- this is my point. We never heard about this until this off-season, which means one of two things:
1. The Cubs didn't know it either; or
2. The Cubs knew all along and kept it from the fans/media.
If it's the first case, why didn't they know -- shouldn't their due diligence picked this up at the time of the trade?
If it's the second case -- and frankly, I don't believe the Cubs could or would want to keep this secret -- why did they make the deal in the first place? Why not insist on a different guy?
Re Walker - I was surprised by reports from the Cubs Convention that the Cubs broadcasters, to a man, couldn't find anything positive to say about him.
I didn't hear much of the broadcasts, but I did listen to Kaplan/Waddle on the Friday night of the convention (when they interviewed Hendry and Baker). The WGN guys were quite positive about Walker -- directly asking Hendry why they are looking to deal him.
Walker also tended to draw applause from the fans in the audience too, not wanting to see him dealt.
Dusty doesn't like the strict platoon because he enjoys playing hitters against certain starting pitchers based on tiny sample sizes. If there is a RHP starting the game, he'll opt for the right handed side of the platoon if that guy is 2 for 5 against him. Dusty doesn't mind rotating players, he just uses a method of playing time distribution that's highly questionable.
What would the fan reaction be if the Cubs traded Sammy Sosa for a minor league pitcher and an injured player?
If this is the case, I'd guess it's some combination of:
(1) More poor work by the training staff, who may have underestimated the severity of the injury or the time to full recovery; and
(2) The Cubs having painted themselves into a corner w/r/t Sosa, to the point where they weren't really in any position to be making big demands.
I'd guess more (2) than (1).
Neifi sucks!
I heard none of the broadcasts. I'm referring to reports of the Q & A session with Pat & Ron, Len & Bob. Posts on some blogs suggest they were united in their negative assessment of Walker.
Clearly, but they surely could have taken someone other than a knowingly injured player without it being a "big" demand. Either way, this is something that the media should address to Hendry -- as far as Hendry is concerned, Hairston was the second most important part of the deal (#1 being to get rid of Sosa).
Look at it this way -- Hendry could have simply taken Fontenot and Crouthers and left it at that. He thought enough to ask for Hairston. Why?
My guess is closer to your #1 -- the Cubs did know about the injury, heard/believed that it wouldn't affect him much at all, were surprised that it put him on the DL, and are only now coming clean with the fact that he was injured all season.
I also think that the reason the Cubs are coming clean has very little to do with propping up Hairston and much more with trying to garner whatever support they can for dealing Walker.
For sure they did. He was DL'ed with a broken ankle in mid-August '04.
Good point. Now that you mention it, I do vaguely recall a discussion that Hairston was recovering from 2004 injuries.
Still, I don't remember the Cubs ever making a big deal about this during the season. Instead, there were all sorts of stories about Hairston missing signs, lacking baseball instincts, and getting into Dusty's doghouse. Even when he was put on the DL last August, it wasn't for the ankle; it was for an elbow problem.
I just think it's funny that they are now trying to spin it as if the main problem with Hairston wasn't an elbow or a lack of instinct, but rather an injury that he suffered two seasons ago.
Neither do I. And, as I've already posted, I don't see how injury excuses the mental ineptitude he showed last year. I'm disappointed that he's still around.
Odds of a Cubs/Cards deal: 100 to 1.5
Minaya should be on this.
And what exactly do the Mets have to offer back to the Cubs?
I'm sure they have a single A lefty who can throw 94 and put up a 1.5 K/BB ratio.
The 1.5 K/BB ratio is negotiable. What's more important is the 94 mph and at least 7 K/9. He can walk as many as he pleases.
Walker either A) starts a second base and gives this team a solid left handed hitter in the 5 or 6 spot or B) he gets traded for something useful. Since based on Hendry's actions Walker must have no trade value(although I am not sure how that is possible) I choose 'A' and pray that somehow the Cubs do as well.
Sounds like they won't need to offer much of anything. Apparently the Cubs won't be happy until they finally just get rid of Mr. Walker. They have treated him like dirt all along.
That's all fine with us Mets fans, as we'd love to have him. Twist Omar's arm, and he might even give up a high-ERA AA pitcher.
A Walker/Hairston platoon would most likely be a very nice offensive platoon (D's a bit iffy). A Walker/Neifi platoon wouldn't suck. At best, we'll likely end up with a Neifi/Hairson platoon which would suck. Most likely, we get Neifi as the full-time starter, which would be awful.
Your memory of the Karros "platoons" is quite different from mine. Hard to call a right-handed hitter who sees 2/3 of his PAs against RHP a platoon player. And it looked as though Hollandsworth/Dubois was shoved down his throat.
Also, I witnessed him hitting a game tying 3-run homer in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs and 2 strikes. Being at a game like is something that stays with you for a long time. so thanks todd
Prior to Choi's injury it was a pretty straight platoon.
Curling man, curling!!!
Isaac
And after acquring Simon it was a pretty straight platoon.
As mentioned, no one runs a strict platoon anymore -- it's pretty hard to do with short benches. Also, as noted, Dusty will play the hot hand or go with "he's 3 for 10 off this pitcher". Does he do more of that than he should? Sure.
The Cubs got about 700 PA out of Karros, Simon, and Choi, some of them PH appearances of course. Karros got about half of those. Given he was nearly the full time starter for about 6-7 weeks between Choi's injury and Simon's acquisition, that's pretty much what you'd expect for the RH half or a platoon.
Prior to Choi getting hurt on June 7th, Karros started 21 games, 7 of them against RHP. After starting against a few RHP in early April, Baker used him almost exclusively against LHP, but stopped doing that in mid-May, weeks before Choi got hurt.
Up to the time when Choi got hurt and for a time thereafter, Karros actually hit RHP well, but that eventually proved to be the fluke everyone with any sense knew it had to be.
red rover red rover send billy beane on over
p[s a man with raccon as his handle wont last long in this neck of the woods....3 weeks left till freedom
Then why is he still a Cub? Their desire to trade Todd has been no secret for months now.
and if so who would replace him?
If MacPhail stays we can be sure it isn't going to be a radical change in operating philosophy.
Whatever.
At the beginning of the season Baker announced that Karros would start against LHPs and "Right handers against whom he's had success against in the past" (not an exact quote, but pretty close IIRC). It was clear that Dusty intended to give Karros and Choi roughly equal playing time.
I could see him declaring a similar platoon policy this year - Neifi would start against all LHPs and any RHP off of whom he'd ever gotten a hit. Walker would only start against RHPs against whom he had at least a .320 career BA. Hairston would start against everyone else.
You know, this started off as a sarcastic joke, but now that I think about it may actually happen this way. Ugh.
'Then why is he still a Cub? Their desire to trade Todd has been no secret for months now.'
I must confess to playing a bit of a devil's advocate. Although Todd would excel as a veteran to help Anderson Hernandez break in slowly as a Met, he would be better served to remaining a Cub and helping them to finally break through to the World Series. I have just seen Management teams everywhere get into a "just do something" mentality and give away true value for the sake of a short term (and short sighted) objective. (Even the Mets have been guilt of this).
BreakOut
Illinois College of Law in the house!
My advice to anyone considering law school would be: Only do it if you can do it relatively debt free. Other than that, it sucks. Big time. But you can make a nice salary slaving away doing work you hate for despotic, anal-retentive bosses.
If I could do it over again, I would have skipped it altogether or, failing that, studied harder as a 1L.
Don't you mean especially the Mets are guilty of this?
I feel so special in a cynical way. I stated repeatedly here and on the cub reporter (more frequently) that Neif! would be the Cubs starting shortstop this year. I said it during the season, and nobody believed me. I'll say it now. This is really very simple, Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker believe Neifi Perez is a good baseball player. Not good defense/no hit, not a utility guy, but a good shortstop. That's a firable offense.
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