I can't get excited by this for one reason. In 440 major league innings he has given up 501 hits. In fact, every season he has been in the majors, he's given up more hits than innings pitched. Look at the recordA lot of those grounders were going through to the outfield and a good number of those fly balls were leaving the yard--in a much bigger ballpark than ours. He did not improve the club and if this is our 5th starter and Wayne's best effort, we're in big trouble.Code:SEASON TEAM G GS CG SHO IP H R ER HR BB SO W L SV HLD BLSV ERA 2002 Hou 17 17 1 1 85.1 100 59 57 12 27 54 6 7 0 0 -- 6.01 2003 Hou 36 4 0 0 49.1 55 31 27 4 17 43 2 1 0 4 -- 4.93 2004 Oak 6 5 0 0 24.1 27 13 12 4 12 10 2 1 0 0 -- 4.44 2005 Oak 29 27 2 1 159.2 170 75 74 11 54 53 10 9 0 0 -- 4.17 2006 Oak 35 16 0 0 121.1 149 70 64 19 53 52 7 7 2 0 1 4.75 Total -- 123 69 3 2 440.0 501 248 234 50 163 212 27 25 2 4 1 4.79
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"You only have to bat a thousand in two things; flying and heart transplants. Everything else you can go 4-for-5."
-Beano Cook
I like the Bellhorn signing. If he gets the at bats, he could hit 15-20 homers.
I hope Saarloos works out, but I've never been too impressed with him. If you have a groundball pitcher, he should be able to strike people out also because they also give up lots of line drives, hits, batters on by error, and unearned runs. Plus, what's the point of a groundball pitcher if he still gives up a fairly high amount of homers?
"I am your child from the future. I'm sorry I didn't tell you this earlier." - Dylan Easton
When it comes to bellhorn, he reminds me a lot of aurillia when he came over. If used right, I think he can provide about what aurillia gave us in 2005 (2006 is too much to ask).
As far as Saarloos, I think he is a good fit for us. We have an IF with Phillips, Gonzalez and Encarnacion that is going to have a tremendous amount of range. That should be a big help for a ground ball pitcher like Saarloos. Not sure what the A's IF looked like last year.
Hmmm. A 32-year-old career .231 hitter who strikes out a lot (177 in 2004), plays the infield and has shown a steady decline at the plate? Wayne's going to sign enough of these $1 million players until our payroll will be $75 million of junk and castoffs. I can just see Narron's excuses for playing him over Encarnacion. The words scrappy and knows how to play the game come to mind.
And we agree on Saarloos.
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"You only have to bat a thousand in two things; flying and heart transplants. Everything else you can go 4-for-5."
-Beano Cook
The only thing about Mark Bellhorn is he'll be a Redleg only because he wears his socks high.
Other than then that, if they think he can compete with Jeff Kleppinger, that should be an indication of how he's fallen.
Some people play baseball. Baseball plays Jay Bruce.
He did not often wear them high when he was a Yankee, unfortunately.
To address another question: a high home run rate in GABP is brutal, to be sure, but I think the greatest hope with a groundball pitcher is a handful of double plays with the Special New Defense. That's squidgy and tentative logic, I know, but I'm happy to see that defense getting some work.
There is no such thing as a pitching prospect.
Lets talk about the effect of switching from AL to NL.... I think it will really help Saarloos, and make this is a good deal for us.
Just look at Arroyo and Loshe last year: they both markedly improved their stats.
I think there are sveral reasons for this: new league where batters don't know them, no DH in lineup (pitchers hitting instead...)...
Average ERA in AL in 2006 was 4.56. Average in NL was 4.49. Yet several pitchers switching Al to NL had bigger improvements.
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"I think we’re starting to get to the point where people are starting to get tired of this stretch of ball,” Votto said. “I think something needs to start changing and start going in a different direction. I’m going to do my part to help make that change.”
I'd like to see a divisional breakdown on this, actually. I think you could be right, but I also think there's a marked difference between coming to the NL from the AL West vs. the AL East or Central. Especially given the disparity between the Oakland and Cincinnati ballparks.
There is no such thing as a pitching prospect.
An experienced 5th starter not expected to be any more than he is, extreme ground ball pitcher obtained for a minor leaguer and only costing $1.2M? Not bad, I won't even criticize the deal if it doesn't work out.
Not something that really floats the boat, but a nice periphreal move. Now at least one semi-major move this offseason would be nice.
Reading comprehension is not just an ability, it's a choice
Bellhorn is sort of a Dunn-lite when he gets the at bats. He strikes out a ton but will work for a walk. But, he is also inconsistent. Some years he just doesn't seem to get going and others his OBP is pretty decent. Maybe this will be an "on" year for him.
Where does the million dollar number come from? Wasn't he signed to a minor league deal? Even if it was a million, that doesn't seem too crippling of a number.Wayne's going to sign enough of these $1 million players until our payroll will be $75 million of junk and castoffs.
I would think he would have to be having an extremely "on" year to take any playing time from Encarnacion. Like you said, he strikes out a ton plus his defense isn't superior. He is a role player who can play several positions, has some pop, will take a walk, and hopefully have a decent on base percentage.I can just see Narron's excuses for playing him over Encarnacion. The words scrappy and knows how to play the game come to mind.
"I am your child from the future. I'm sorry I didn't tell you this earlier." - Dylan Easton
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