Kuzul

Last night, Arizona Diamondbacks’ second baseman Kelly Johnson became the third player this year to hit for the cycle. Johnson went 4-for-4 with three RBI along with a hit by pitch in the Diamondbacks 7-4 loss to the San Francisco Giants.

While this is a great feat for Johnson, I am a tad annoyed this happened. I am annoyed this happened because I had Johnson on my bench last night for my fantasy team. My logic? I went off sample size.

Johnson went into last night’s game 5-for-10 with two doubles and a triple off of Giants’ starter Jonathan Sanchez. This is pretty impressive, but I thought that was too small of a sample size to go off of.

I decided to look at the larger sample size, which was Sanchez versus left-handed batters. Lefties were hitting just .169 with a .582 OPS and two home runs (ironically they were hit by Ike Davis in the same game, who is also on my fantasy team and who I also benched the day he hit those two homers) in 71 ABs against Sanchez in 2010.

I figured the odds were in my favor that Johnson’s line would even out against Sanchez and Sanchez’s success against lefties would hold true. I inserted Gordon Beckham into my starting lineup and he proceeded to go 1-for-4 against Trevor Cahill and the Oakland A’s.

Johnson on the other hand, ripped a home run in the first (411 feet) and then ripped another double off of Sanchez in the fifth. Johnson got his triple in the sixth off of Santiago Casilla and completed the cycle with a single in the eighth off of Sergio Romo.

I play in a total points league and Johnson’s benching cost me 27 points last night. That is a week worth’s of points in one day sitting on my bench. Just terrible.

This is the second time I have put my fantasy team in the hands of Sanchez and for the second time he has made me look like a fool. No more. If I have a lefty going against Sanchez, I am starting him.

I have learned my lesson.

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In a move that has been anticipated for a while, the Oakland A’s have locked up catcher Kurt Suzuki for the foreseeable future.

The A’s and Suzuki agreed to a four-year, $16.25 million contract on Friday. There is a vesting option for a fifth year based on games played. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle has the breakdown of the contract:

Suzuki gets $600,000 this year with a $150,000 signing bonus; $3.4 million in 2011; $5 million in 2012; and $6.45 million in 2013.

The club holds an option for $8.5 million in 2014, with a $650,000 buyout, but there is also the vesting option that kicks in for that year if Suzuki plays in at least 118 games in 2013…an option worth $9.25 million.

At 26 years old, I think this is a good deal for Suzuki and the A’s. Here is where Suzuki ranks amongst all major league catchers over the last three calendar years:

Games: Fourth (415)

HR: Fifth (37)

OPS: Fifth (.729)

WAR: Fifth (6.8)

While the last couple of years haven’t been the best time for offensive catchers, Suzuki does rank towards the top of most offensive categories.

I would say he has been solid, yet unspectacular for the A’s over the course of his career.

Suzuki joins pitcher Brett Anderson as players the A’s have locked up for the next four years.

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It’s really unbelievable. The Kansas City Royals just can’t catch a break. Even when one of their best trade chips is having his best season, something goes wrong.

The Royals got some bad news on Friday when they learned that outfielder David DeJesus will be out for the year.

DeJesus will undergo season-ending surgery on Monday to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb.

DeJesus hurt the thumb when he crashed into the wall at Yankee Stadium on Thursday night.

It’s amazing sometimes. A guy barely crashes into an outfield fence and is out for the year, and a pitcher gets a bullet going 100 mph off his noggin and makes his next start. Funny how that works sometimes.

Well, this just stinks if you are a Royals fan. Not only was DeJesus having his best season at the dish putting up a .318/.384/.443 with five HR’s, but outside of Zack Greinke (if he really is on the market) was the Royals top trade deadline chip.

It was rumored that the Boston Red Sox, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, and Tampa Bay Rays all had interest in acquiring the 30-year-old former Rutgers Scarlet Knight.

Now with DeJesus out for the year, the Royals can’t get anything for him when his stock was the highest.

You can’t make this stuff up.

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I think of all the words that New York Yankee fans could use to describe Carl Pavano, workhorse would not be one of them.

While Pavano clearly wasn’t a workhorse in New York, he has been one in Minnesota, and in 2010, he has become one of the best pitchers in the American League.

Pavano tossed his second complete game in a row last night as he and the Minnesota Twins blanked the Baltimore Orioles 5-0. Pavano allowed just five hits, walked one, and whiffed four in the 102-pitch effort.

Pavano and his 70’s porn mustache moved to 12-6 on the season, and he has a 3.26 ERA. For those of you not aware of how good Pavano has been this year, just take a look at his AL rankings after last night:

Wins: Second (12)

WHIP: Second (1.01)

CG: Second (5)

IP: Third (143.2)

First-Pitch Strike Percentage: Third (68.3)

ERA: 12th (3.26)

That is one heck of a season so far. It’s the type of season that will most likely have Pavano finish in the top-10 in AL Cy Young award voting. Who would have thought that before the season started?

Pavano is a free agent at the end of the year, and it’s unclear whether he will be back with the Twins in 2011.

However, one thing is clear—Pavano is having an amazing season in Minnesota.

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I guess when your third basemen are batting a combined .214, you are going to try to and go shopping for a new one. That’s what the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim did on Thursday as they acquired Alberto Callaspo from the Kansas City Royals.

Callaspo was acquired for pitchers Sean O’Sullivan and Will Smith. Callaspo was batting .275/.308./.410 with eight HR’s in 349 AB’s with the Royals this year. He was also playing a solid third base this year, compiling a 2.9 UZR in 76 games.

I think the best word to describe Callaspo would be “solid.” He’s not going to be a superstar, but he is not going to be a scrub either. He’s a guy the Angels can be comfortable with running him out there every day and getting the job done.

Callaspo had his breakout season last year with the Royals when he hit .300/.356/.457 with 11 HR’s. While Callaspo might have been one of the few solid players the Royals have, this trade allows them to do a couple of things.

First, it gives them pitching back, which the Royals desperately need. O’Sullivan is a 22-year-old righty that has a 2.08 ERA in five games this season. In five minor league seasons, O’Sullivan was 42-26 with a 3.81 ERA and a 6.6 K/9.

I wonder how influenced the Royals were by O’Sullivan’s last start against the New York Yankees? He gave up just two hits and two runs while striking out four in six solid innings of work. That would be the equivalent of a quarterback having a huge game against Notre Dame and all of a sudden his draft stock rises.

Smith is a 21-year-old lefty who has struggled in three levels in the Angels’ organization this season. Smith has compiled a 5.53 ERA in 19 starts in High Single-A, Double-A, and Triple-A in 2010.

Second, this allows the Royals to pave the way for an Alex Gordon return to third or a Mike Moustakas promotion in the future. Gordon is playing left field and Moustakas is playing third currently for the Royals’ Triple-A club and I believe that is where they will play when they eventually get the call to the majors.

Outside of getting Callaspo, I wonder if this spells the end of the Brandon Wood era in Anaheim? The Angels gave him the ball this season and he didn’t do anything with it.

Either he is going to go one of two ways. Either he is going to be a classic “Quadruple-A” player his whole career, or a guy who gets traded and could blossom in a different environment.

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The Milwaukee Brewers had high expectations going into the 2010 season, but their starting pitching let them down again.

At 43-52 heading into last night’s action against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Brewers look to be sellers instead of buyers at the trade deadline.

One of the more attractive trade chips the Brewers have to get an influx of pitching into their organization is right fielder Corey Hart. Let’s take a look at the pros, cons, and the teams that might be interested in the two-time All-Star out of Kentucky.

It sounds so easy. Just lower your hands and good things will happen. That is what Hart did in the offseason and now he is having a career year.

After having a miserable 2009, Hart adjusted his batting stance in the offseason by lowering his hands, and the rest is history. Hart went into last night’s action second in the NL in HRs (22), fourth in slugging (.562), second in RBI (70), and 10th in OPS (.910).

He is currently on pace for a .290/.343/.562 with 39 HRs season. Those are big boy numbers.

Hart is doing a lot of damage against lefties this year. He is hitting .352 with an OPS of 1.115 against lefties. He could be attractive to a team like the Tampa Bay Rays, who might face John Danks, Mark Buehrle, C.C. Sabathia, or Andy Pettitte in the playoffs.

Hart also has a pretty affordable contract moving forward. He will make $4.8 million this year and won’t be a free agent until after the 2011 season, so the team trading for him will get him for a year and a half.

Cons

Perhaps the biggest con against Hart is his asking price. Apparently, Brewers’ GM Doug Melvin is asking for the moon.

Would I trade Madison Bumgarner for Hart? Not a chance.

If that is the asking price for Hart, then he might be staying in Milwaukee for a while.

Another negative against Hart is that he has never been the greatest of fielders. Over the last three years, he ranks towards the bottom of right fielders in terms of UZR, which could be a factor if he goes to a bigger ballpark.

A team also has to wonder about Hart’s home and road splits. Hart’s OPS is over 100 points higher at home than on the road. What happens when he leaves the friendly confines of Miller Park?

Interested Teams?

Now that we have looked at the pros and cons, let’s look at the teams that could be interested in acquiring the 28-year-old.

San Francisco Giants: This is the logical destination for Hart. The Giants need a bopper in the middle of their lineup. The issue though is that the Brewers are asking for Bumgarner and I don’t think that is going to happen.

San Diego Padres: Like their division rival, the Padres need more offense. Hart would be nice protection for Adrian Gonzalez.

Atlanta Braves: The Braves are looking for outfield help and Hart could move over to left. How deadly would a Jason Heyward-Troy Glaus-Brian McCann-Corey Hart middle-of-the order be?

Tampa Bay Rays: Hart could be what Pat Burrell should have been for the Rays—a power-hitting right-handed batter in the middle of the lineup. Hart could DH too.

Chicago White Sox: The White Sox are hell-bent on getting a left-handed power hitter like Hart’s teammate, Prince Fielder, or Adam Dunn. But if Ken Williams fails to get those lefties, Hart might be a fall-back option.

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With the news that Chicago Cubs manager is going to retire at the end of the season, it’s time to line up the candidates who potentially could replace Piniella in the Windy City. I personally think the Cubs manager job is a very attractive job for the sole reason that there are very little expectations.

If you lose, big deal. The Cubs have had 33 managers since 1908 and they all have had one thing in common—they all lost. If things don’t pan out in Chicago, then you are just like everyone else.

However, if you win, you will be remembered forever. The reward is much greater than the risk. That is a job I will take anytime and twice on Sunday.

I also think another plus about the Cubs job is Tom Ricketts. Think about how many teams not only in baseball, but in all of sports that have their ownership situation is in flux. The Cubs’ ownership situation is settled and should be settled for quite some time.

That being said (cue Larry David), here are the potential candidates to replace Piniella in 2010:

1. Ryne Sandberg. The manager of the Cubs Triple-A Iowa team and the most logical choice. Sandberg is loved in Chicago and it would be only fitting for him to come back and manage the team he played for.

2. Joe Girardi. Girardi played for the Cubs for a total of seven seasons, he is a Northwestern guy, and his contract expires at the end of the year. The Yankees believe the organization is more important than the manager (they are right about that) and might not want to meet Girardi’s contract demands.

3. Bobby Valentine. From all indications, the Cubs are looking for a big name and Valentine would fit the bill. One the reasons negotiations between Valentine and the Florida Marlins fell apart was because the Marlins wouldn’t guarantee they would put more money into the team. He won’t have that issue in Chicago.

4. Joe Torre. Torre’s contract expires at the end of the year and I think he has had it in Los Angeles. The Dodgers’ ownership situation is a clown show and if you look at Torre during his press conferences, he looks like a beaten man. A change of scenery could do him good.

5. Eric Wedge. Probably a long shot, but he is a Midwest guy (born in Indiana) and was fairly successful in Cleveland. I have always liked Wedge as a manager and think he would be a good fit in Chicago.

6. Alan Trammell. Another long shot, but Trammell is currently the bench coach in Chicago and does have managerial experience in Detroit. Usually when the manager goes, the bench coaches aren’t too far behind. I would be very surprised if Trammell got the job.

So those are my candidates to replace Piniella. Who’s your choice?

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The Detroit Tigers suffered a really bad break on Tuesday night when starting 3B Brandon Inge was placed on the 15-day DL with a broken left hand. Inge broke the hand when he was hit by a pitch by Scott Feldman in the third inning of Monday night’s game against the Texas Rangers.

It’s expected that Inge will miss four-to-six weeks with the injury. This is a big blow to the Tigers as Inge is having a solid season on the field and is one of the leaders on this Detroit team.

Going into last night’s game against the Rangers, the Tigers were 2.5 games behind the first place Chicago White Sox in the AL Central. They are clearly in “win now” mode, so how do they replace Inge in the lineup and on the field?

They could go with Don Kelly for the time being, but his sub-.220 average might not cut the mustard in Detroit. Another internal option for the Tigers would be to move Carlos Guillen back to third, where he played 89 games back in 2008 and promote Scott Sizemore to play second base. Sizemore is currently hitting .331 in 163 AB’s for Triple-A Toledo.

If the Tigers want to go outside the organization and make a trade, there are a couple of inexpensive third baseman available on the market. Third baseman that available are Miguel Tejada, Jose Lopez, Ty Wigginton, Jorge Cantu, Jhonny Peralta, and Alberto Callaspo.

Whatever the Tigers decide to do, one thing is for sure — losing Inge at this stage of the season definitely hurts.

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The New York Mets are about to make Oliver Perez the most expensive left-handed specialist in the history of the game. The Mets will activate Perez from the 15-day DL today and will use him primarily as a left-handed specialist.

Despite having to pay Perez $12 million this year and $11 million next year, it’s actually not a bad idea for the Mets.

Is Perez one of the top-five most overpaid players in the game?

Absolutely.

But the Mets are doing the right thing by putting salary aside and trying to put Perez in the best position to succeed, and I think he can succeed as a left-handed specialist out of the pen.

Over his career, Perez has held left-handed batters to a .226/.315/.367 hitting line. The lefties’ .682 OPS against Perez is about 100 points lower than the righties’ OPS.

Here are the hitting lines for left-handed batters against Perez over the last three seasons.

2009: .200/.278/.363

2008: .158/.250/.271

2007: .206/.285/.340

So, as you can see, Perez has been getting lefties out both early and late in his career. Based on his past success, Perez should be able to get out one or two left-handed batters per game for the Mets.

Who knows? Maybe Perez can reinvent himself in this role. Heck, Darren Oliver was able to do it.  He has lasted 17 years in the majors, and is still going strong in 2010 (1.32 ERA in 41 IP).

Perez should be able to make it as a left-handed specialist. After all, he can’t be as bad as he was as a starter.

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The acting and baseball community lost a great one yesterday as actor James Gammon, who famously played manager Lou Brown in the movie, Major League , passed away at the age of 70. He passed away at his home in Costa Mesa, CA. 

This is definitely sad news. Gammon’s Lou Brown character in Major League was one of the classic sports movie characters of all time. You know a guy is great in a role when you can’t picture anyone else playing that character.

Between his froggy voice, mustache, and quick-witted humor in the movie, he played the manager role to a tee. Here is a classic exchange between Indians GM Charlie Donovan and Brown in the movie:

Charlie Donovan : How would you like to manage the Indians this year?
Lou Brown : Gee, I don’t know…
Charlie Donovan : What do you mean, you don’t know? This is your chance to manage in the big leagues.
Lou Brown : Let me get back to you, will ya, Charlie? I got a guy on the other line asking about some white walls.

That is just great! Perhaps Brown is most famous for this line:

“Come on Dorn, get in front of the damn ball! Don’t give me this ‘olé’ bullsh^t!”

That line is used by every guy who is in their late 20s/early 30s who still plays softball or baseball and sees a guy field the ball off to his side.

RIP James Gammon. You played one of the great roles in American sports movie history. Major League wouldn’t have been a classic without you.

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