Ask Baseball America By James Bailey
Download 1 Mb.
|
June 22, 2000There really was going to be a column on Tuesday. Really. In fact, it was nearly finished on Monday night down in Charleston, S.C. But I was using a laptop and not my familiar computer and I stupidly didn't save the file correctly. Then Tuesday morning, I went to open it and finish it off and ended up writing over everything and wiping out about two hours worth of work. Needless to say at that point it was too late to redo it all and there was no Tuesday Ask BA. Whenever something like that happens I'm always reminded of the line near the end of "A Christmas Story," when the neighbor's dogs have torn into the kitchen and destroyed the turkey. As the family is standing around in shock, Ralphie's dad just matter of factly says, "Okay, everybody get dressed. We're going out to eat." I got over my shock pretty quickly and went out to eat Tuesday (but not to a Chinese restaurant), to the South Atlantic League all-star luncheon at Charleston Place. That was terrific. Sure, John Henry Moss went on a little too long, but other than that the lunch was great. Then the pregame festivities at the park were great, and the game was great (at least the last couple of innings were) and the post-game party was pretty good. To sum it all up, I had a lot of fun down there and I'm not one bit sorry that you didn't get a column on Tuesday. As for my observations from the game, here are a few: • Augusta outfielder Lew Ford can absolutely fly. It's funny how you develop a mental picture of guys based on their name and stat lines. Then you see them in real life and they don't look anything like you expected. Ford doesn't look real fast in street clothes but, boy, is he ever speedy. He ripped a ball into left field and as I generally do, I followed the ball before looking back to the infield to pick up the runner. I expected to see Ford somewhere in the vicinity of first base, but he was already cutting the bag at second, and cutting it perfectly. He made it to third easily. I heard a rumor that he was getting promoted to Double-A Trenton after the game, so maybe that was his last appearance in an Augusta uniform. • Josh Hamilton really is as nice as everyone says he is. He was still down on the field signing autographs when I left the stadium, and several other players had already showered and were getting on the bus. That's not a knock on them, because every player seemed willing to sign autographs for anyone who asked. It's more just a credit to Hamilton. • Joseph P. Riley Jr. Ballpark is a nice facility and a really tough place to hit home runs. That doesn't make for a high scoring home run hitting contest, but it was still entertaining. You just couldn't take for granted that any ball, no matter how hard it appeared to have been hit, was going to get out. It's not the dimensions of the stadium that causes that. It's the wind, which seems to be constantly blowing in. • Charleston is a cool city and I need to get back there. If you like historic old cities, you will like Charleston. If you want more from the game, check out our minor league all-star coverage. You'll find updates there from every game that's been played so far, not just the Sally League contest. Now for a few questions. I've been searching the Internet to find out where a couple of young draft picks are playing, but to no avail. I'm hoping you can give us some insight. We've all heard about Rick Asadoorian, but to be so highly touted I can't seem to find him on a minor league roster. I even went to the Lowell Spinners Webpage; they've got an updated 2000 roster but he's not on it. Is there a chance he'll play the second half in the South Atlantic League? The other player in question is Expos pitcher Josh Girdley. Thanks for your time and consideration. Steve Williams Asadoorian is playing in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. I'd say there is probably not much chance he will be in the South Atlantic League this year, though sometimes young players who perform very well in Rookie ball are called up to a full-season league for the last week of the season. Girdley is on the Vermont roster in the New York-Penn League. Do you have or could you get your hands on Ron Guidry's minor league stats? Thanks, Bill
Interestingly, after his unbelievable showing as a reliever in '76, he reverted back to the rotation as a rookie in 1977 and quickly became one of the best in the American League. Before the year, BA had Xaviar Nady ranked as a possible No. 1 pick. It turned out that he went in the middle of the second round. Did his stock drop that much, did BA over-estimate his worth, or is it simply a matter of him being a difficult signing? If he will be tough to sign, has San Diego given any indication of whether or not they're going to offer first-round money? Does Nady's future look like first base, since the Padres organization is all set to coronate Burroughs at third base for the next decade? Michael Dominguez Oshawa, Ontario Nady's stock seemed to dip a little as the year progressed, but that doesn't account for him slipping to the second round. Strictly on talent, he should have gone somewhere in the 8-15 pick range. His fall was based on money and the fact that he wanted a major league contract. Nady is believed to be looking for something in the neighborhood of $3 million, plus the big league deal. It's unlikely the Padres are going to come anywhere near that. What that means is he'll have to decide toward the end of the summer if he wants to come down in his price or stick to his guns and either go back to school or head for the independent leagues next year. If Nady does sign, he probably will be moved to first. He did play second as a freshman at Cal, but he's really more of a corner guy now. Hi, I caught this item on your transactions page (which, by the way, is a great feature because nowhere else can one find such a comprehensive list of player movements.) Quad City--Sent SS Francis Alvarez to Hagerstown in the Blue Jays organization in exchange for RHP Mike Romano. I'm kind of a fan of Mike Romano, who has established himself as a reliable Triple-A pitcher and strikes me as the type who will get his share of chances in the big leagues if he stays healthy. What can you tell me about Francis Alvarez, and can you speculate on why big league organizations make deals like this (Triple-A player for low-A player)? Thanks, John Reid Alvarez, who is actually better known as Jimmy Alvarez, is a 20-year-old Dominican who was batting .224 with four homers and 21 RBIs at Quad City. He was mainly a shortstop last year, but had spent much of this season at second base. He's a switch-hitter with a little pop for a middle infielder, and he's willing to take a walk, as his 81 bases on balls last year indicates. I'm not sure that Romano really will get his share of chance in the big leagues. He's in his eighth professional season and has three big league games under his belt. He has become a solid Triple-A starter, though, and as guys like Dave Eiland have proven, if you stick at it long enough, someone eventually might give you a chance. At 29, Romano is several years younger than Eiland and he could very well get the call to Minnesota and turn in a couple of solid seasons for the Twins. But if you ask him, he probably won't tell you that he's gotten "his share" of callups to this point. Realistically, Romano is the kind of pickup that most teams make in the six-year free agent market each winter. He was, in fact, a six-year free agent last winter and re-signed with the Blue Jays. The Twins picked him up now to help fill out their rotation at Salt Lake. I'd look at this trade as two teams trying to fill some organizational holes by swapping a couple of players who have a shot at the big leagues but aren't regarded as top-notch prospects. Teams swapping players to fill holes in the minor leagues is not uncommon. In fact, towards the end of spring training every year, there are a dozen players dealt for "future considerations" or players to be named, just because one team has too many players at a certain position and another needs someone to play a certain role on one of its farm teams. Directory: mlb mlb -> By Ken Gurnick mlb -> Los angeles dodgers clips mlb -> 2010 – What’s the name of the umpire whose errant call cost the Tigers’ Armando Galarraga a perfect game in 2010? (Jim Joyce) gabp mlb -> Wednesday, September 23, 2015 headlines: Verrett stumbles in the fifth as Mets lose to Braves 6-2 mlb -> All-Star History In what city was the first All-Game played? (Chicago, 1933) Baseball & Pop Culture mlb -> Los angeles dodgers clips mlb -> Los angeles dodgers clips mlb -> Los angeles dodgers clips mlb -> The Impact of Television Revenue on Major League Baseball mlb -> Los angeles dodgers clips Download 1 Mb. Share with your friends:
|