Teddy Ballgame | The Baseball Zealot

ALFONSO SORIANO: LOST IN THE IVY

Alfonso Soriano What are they thinking? Before last year Soriano was a poor fielding secondbaseman, then he was traded to DC, and shifted to leftfield. If you remember Alfonso balked at playing the outfield, even stating how he wouldn’t do it. As you know he did play leftfield, looked a little lost at times, but … Continue reading “ALFONSO SORIANO: LOST IN THE IVY”

Alfonso Soriano

What are they thinking? Before last year Soriano was a poor fielding secondbaseman, then he was traded to DC, and shifted to leftfield. If you remember Alfonso balked at playing the outfield, even stating how he wouldn’t do it. As you know he did play leftfield, looked a little lost at times, but had 22 assists (11 errors), probably because everybody ran on him, testing his arm. This guy had a .969 fielding percentage, roughly the same as his fielding percentage at 2B. Jacque Jones had an object thrown at him from the Bud Lite Bleachers while playing in the Friendly Confines, because of his inept fielding, he posted a .976 mark in RF (same as Sammy Sosa’s career RF fielding pct). Now for the folly, the Cubbies are talking about moving Soriano to CF, frankly they might be better off with John Foggerty out there. I’m sure Budweiser sales will go up as fans try to forget about Juan Pierre and his 2006 1.000 fielding percentage, but maybe perfect is overrated. And maybe the guy who wrote the book about how defense up the middle is important, didn’t know what he was talking about. This all came to mind when I looked at the picture of the front page of today’s Sun-Times Sports section. It’s a picture of Alfonso (who arrived five days early) fielding a flyball. Honestly it looked like the little kid in Little League, who you tried to hide in rightfield, and you hoped a ball wouldn’t be hit there.

6/20/78: A DAY TO REMEMBER

Jim Breazeale CLuke & Teddy Ballgame were there, sitting in the RF upperdeck at Comiskey Park, when history happened. The Seattle Mariners were in town, battling the White Sox, 13.057 were in attendance. Paul Mitchell defeated Steve Stone 4-2, with Enrique Romo picking up the save. But the reason this game will forever be etched … Continue reading “6/20/78: A DAY TO REMEMBER”

Jim Breazeale

CLuke & Teddy Ballgame were there, sitting in the RF upperdeck at Comiskey Park, when history happened. The Seattle Mariners were in town, battling the White Sox, 13.057 were in attendance. Paul Mitchell defeated Steve Stone 4-2, with Enrique Romo picking up the save. But the reason this game will forever be etched in our memories is Jim “BoBo” Breazeale. Breazeale went yard, not once, but twice in the game! Those were the first two homers Jim hit for the Sox, he would hit one more, one week later. On this day, excitement ruled, what if this guy could get 500 at bats in a season!

REMEMBERING PAUL EDMONDSON

A couple of days and 37 years ago Paul Edmondson & his girlfriend were killed in an auto accident in Santa Barbara. Edmondson was driving on highway 101 on his way to spring training, when his car skidded into oncoming traffic on a rain soaked road. Paul was just 27 years old, had all the … Continue reading “REMEMBERING PAUL EDMONDSON”

A couple of days and 37 years ago Paul Edmondson & his girlfriend were killed in an auto accident in Santa Barbara. Edmondson was driving on highway 101 on his way to spring training, when his car skidded into oncoming traffic on a rain soaked road. Paul was just 27 years old, had all the promise of a very talented righthander, with hopes springing eternal.

This 6’5″ Kansas City born pitcher had just celebrated his 27th birthday February 12th, the day before he was killed. Even though Edmondson had a 1-6 record as a rookie, it was very misleading. The White Sox scored only five runs in his six losses. He got his first win in his first big league start against the California Angels, a two hitter. Paul was penciled into the starting rotation. It’s always sad to think about, what might have been.

CUBBIES: ANY BETTER?

The Chicago Tribune & GM Jim Hendry have thrown alot of money at the problem, but will that prove to be the answer? Last year’s ballclub was 66-96 under Dusty Baker. This year Lou Piniella (they’re not saying, LOU) was brought in to the tune of 10 million dollars! He’s got the task of lighting … Continue reading “CUBBIES: ANY BETTER?”

What were some of the problems with last year’s Cubbies? Poor infield defense, no leftfielder, only one starting pitcher, an inconsistent closer, and injuries behind the plate & over at firstbase. So what did the Trib do to resolve these issues? They brought in Mark DeRosa, a rightfielder to play secondbase. They brought in Alfonso Soriano, a recently converted leftfielder to play centerfield. Centerfield was the only place a ball could be hit last year, where you knew it would be caught, but that was Juan Pierre, and that was last year. They brought in Ted Lilly, who is barely over .500 for his career, after having a career year, 15-13, last year. But Lilly will simply replace Greg Maddux in the rotation. They brought in Jason Marquis, who was left off the St. Louis Cardinals playoff roster on the way to a World Series. Marquis is a flyball pitcher on a team with the worst outfield defense in the game. They brought in Cesar Izturis, who was last healthy in 2004, to play SS. Speaking of health, there is no reason to believe that either Derrek Lee or Michael Barrett will be healthy in 2007. I saw where Kerry Wood might be the closer before year end. But you are completely delusional to think that Kerry Wood, Wade Miller, or Mark Prior will ever be healthy again.

That brings us to what went right in 2006? Two things that come to mind are Aramis Ramirez & Carlos Zambrano. But now that Ramirez has inked his big deal after playing out of his mind last year, and you saw how much he hustled, he can revert to the Aramis we all know and love. Now that brings us to the Big Z! There is already the talk about him getting what he deserves or he’ll walk. I’m not about to deny that Carlos Zambrano is a very good, young pitcher, but if I were him, I’d test the market to see what a good pitcher is worth. Which means this big horse will be one and done.

I know this kind of talk normally creep up on Cub fans like Fruit of the Loom undershorts, after they’ve won the April World Series. But even after throwing all this money at the problem, it’s still there, it’s called the Chicago Cubs!

THOME IT AIN’T SO JIM

Jim Thome Oprah Winfrey I couldn’t believe it when I heard Jim Thome was in Oprah’s audience. It gets MUCH worse! Dr. Oz was on talking about vah-jay-jays (Oprah’s term, not mine). Then they said it was like a self cleaning oven down there. How embarrassing!!! Thome was there with his wife, but admitted he … Continue reading “THOME IT AIN’T SO JIM”

Jim Thome

Oprah Winfrey

I couldn’t believe it when I heard Jim Thome was in Oprah’s audience. It gets MUCH worse! Dr. Oz was on talking about vah-jay-jays (Oprah’s term, not mine). Then they said it was like a self cleaning oven down there. How embarrassing!!! Thome was there with his wife, but admitted he was sure to take some good natured ribbing from his teammates, OH YEAH!

At least Jim was in the audience, the other day I saw a clip where ARod was on the Martha Stewart Show, promoting his new children’s book. Rodriguez told how he got sick while watching the Superbowl. Alex said, it wasn’t because he wanted the Bears to win, but he would have liked Tom Brady to have been playing in the Big Game. ARod was wearing the same pink shirt he was wearing when we shared an elevator in KC, couldn’t he just burn that shirt?

Followup: Sorry for barging in on your post, TB but I thought I’d post a link to the video. It’s quite funny. -TBZ

KRIS BENSON: THE BUTLER IS OUT

Kris & Anna Benson

Kris Benson will have surgery to repair a partially torn rotator cuff and will miss the entire 2007 season. The 32 year old Orioles right hander from Superior, Wisconsin missed the entire 2001 season following Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ligament in his elbow. Baltimore immediately signed Steve Trachsel to replace Benson in the rotation.

BRANDON McCARTHY, HE GONE!!!

Nick Masset

First off I’m a Sox fan! I know my baseball and believe in GM Kenny Williams’ ability to evaluate talent and build a ballclub. He’s the guy who put together a championship team a couple of years ago and a 90 win team one last season.

So I’m not going to go into panic mode just because we traded Freddy Garcia, Neal Cotts, Ross Gload, & Brandon McCarthy. The White Sox strength from their championship ballclub was the starting rotation, which consisted of quality arms from one to five. Last year the arms were there, but the results were shakey. Although Garcia had a solid year, his velocity wasn’t there. So he was dealt for Gavin Floyd & Gio Gonzalez, I have no problem with that. Then we sent Cotts to the Northside of town in exchange for hardthrowing Dave Aardsma, Neal lost his confidence with the Sox and was resembling departed lefty Damaso Marte, Aardsma throws smoke & looks to be the righthanded compliment of Matt Thornton. Then you add the 6’10” lefty Andrew Sisco stolen from the Royals for Ross Gload. But Kenny wasn’t done there, sending Brandon McCarthy to the Rangers for pitching prospects John Danks, Nick Masset, & Jacob Rasner. Williams likened Masset to closer Bobby Jenks in velocity, which isn’t a bad thing. Not sure where all these arms are going to fit in, but it’s a nice problem to have. Not to mention 22 year old knuckleballer Charlie Haeger appears to be ready. It looks like the 2007 bullpen will be a strength rather than a problem.

I also like that Toby Hall will backup AJ Pierzynski behind the plate. Now all we have to do is get centerfield figured out, we’ll have to see what Kenny has up his sleeve.

SOX & THE CITY

Sox and the City is a book I picked up for my friend CLuke’s 50th birthday, but being a good Sox fan, he already had it. So I had to keep it for myself. It’s a quick read, written by Richard Roeper of the Chicago Sun-Times and Ebert & Roeper, nothing against Roeper, but I miss Siskel. Gene Siskel used to sit by me from time to time at the Bulls games, he was a great guy! I’d highly recommend this book as a Christmas present for any White Sox fan you might have on your shopping list.

The book brought me back to the old Comiskey Park. I could almost smell the place (a strange combination of stale beer & whatever else that lingered in the bowels of the ballpark) as I leafed through the pages. Many of the memories that stuck in Roeper’s mind were not his alone, in fact he struck common ground when he said, he remembered some of those games in his childhood better than the 2005 World Series.

My mind drifted to days gone by when Ken Berry roamed centerfield, Wilbur Wood was on the mound everyday as a starting pitcher (or so it seemed), Dick Allen hit two inside the park homers against Minnesota (Bobby Darwin was the Twins centerfielder), and the beloved South Side Hitmen of 1977. And I’ll never forget Sox announcer Bob Waller criticizing lack of hustle after a particularly long season. Nor can I forget the Sox short pants uniforms! Oh and those rabbit ears, trying to fine tune UHF and rid Comiskey of snow on my black & white TV set. I’d write more, but I wanna get back to reading this delightful book.

MATSUZAKA TO WEAR RED SOX

K What a perfect name for an APBA pitcher! In the middle of November the Bosox won exclusive negotiating rights with Daisuke Matsuzaka by paying the Seibu Lions $51.1 million dollars. It is reported that Mastsuzaka has come to an agreement to relocate to Fenway Park in a deal that could reach $60 million dollars, … Continue reading “MATSUZAKA TO WEAR RED SOX”

K What a perfect name for an APBA pitcher!

In the middle of November the Bosox won exclusive negotiating rights with Daisuke Matsuzaka by paying the Seibu Lions $51.1 million dollars. It is reported that Mastsuzaka has come to an agreement to relocate to Fenway Park in a deal that could reach $60 million dollars, that’s alotta YEN! The 26 year old Japanese righthander is expected to become the ace of a rotation which already
includes Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, Jonathan Papelbon, and Tim Wakefield. I’ve been playing APBA Baseball for 35+ years and this guy’s got the perfect name for an APBA pitcher! Play results from rolling a couple of dice and of course K meaning strikeout.

OOPS THERE GOES ANOTHER ONE

Kenny Lofton I know the Chicago Cubs have said Alfonso Soriano can play centerfield, but actually seeing that happen might be another painful story. Last season the defensively challenged secondbaseman was switched to leftfield by the Washington Nationals. I guess the theory was to move him as far away from the play as possible, like … Continue reading “OOPS THERE GOES ANOTHER ONE”

Kenny Lofton

I know the Chicago Cubs have said Alfonso Soriano can play centerfield, but actually seeing that happen might be another painful story. Last season the defensively challenged secondbaseman was switched to leftfield by the Washington Nationals. I guess the theory was to move him as far away from the play as possible, like the bad fielding kid in Little League, where can we hide him? Surprisingly Alfonso was the leader among NL outfielders in assists, not surprisingly NL runners ran on him every chance they got. Memories of Lonnie Smith, Ralph Garr, & El Caballo popped into my mind as I watched him attempt to catch flyballs. But seeing Soriano in CF seems to be coming closer and closer to reality.

Professional centerfielder & leadoff man Kenny Lofton signed with the Texas Rangers to replace Gary Matthews, Jr. and defensive wizard Jay Payton signed on with the O’s to play LF. Either would have been a good fit on the Northside of Chicago, or the Southside for that matter. For those of you who have listened to Baseball Zealot Radio have heard me repeatedly say, “the Cubs should sign Kenny Lofton”.