This week I will analyze all the major December transactions made in baseball, except for Rangers transactions (covered last week).
12-2-07 The Houston Astros signed Kaz Matsui to a three-year contract.
Kazuo will take the starting second base job from Mark Loretta. Mark only did okay last year and Kaz will definitely be an upgrade. It should help the Astros, but they’re still far from a playoff team.
12-3-07 The Arizona Diamondbacks traded Carlos Quentin to the Chicago White Sox for Chris Carter.
Carlos Quentin has good potential, but struggled last year. I thought he would do well at the beginning of the year, but he hit .214 with only 5 homers and 31 RBI’s. Chris Carter has played very well in the minors, only hitting under .300 in 2005, when he hit .296.
12-5-07 The Detroit Tigers traded Burke Badenhop, Eulogio De La Cruz, Dallas Trahern, Andrew Miller, Mike Rabelo and Cameron Maybin to the Florida Marlins for Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera
The Tigers traded some very good prospects, but adding Miguel Cabrera to their already good lineup makes their batting as good as it gets. Also, Dontrelle will make a very good #3 pitcher in the rotation. From the Marlins side, they got a lot of good prospects and in 2 or 3 years, they should be pretty good.
12-10-07 The Milwaukee Brewers signed Eric Gagne to a one-year contract
Gagne could help the Brewers, he could hurt them, or he could not play. We’ve seen all those things in his career. He helped the Dodgers and the Rangers, he hurt the Red Sox, and he played only 2 games for the Dodgers in ’06. He might be able to fill in for Francisco Cordero’s absence, so I think this was a decent signing.
12-10-07 The San Diego Padres signed Randy Wolfe to a one-year contract
Wolfe had a shoulder injury in July last year and didn’t come back the rest of the season. He should make a good #5 starter, though.
12-12-07 The San Francisco Giants signed Aaron Rowand to a five-year contract
Rowand was an All-Star last year and should really help the Giants. He will take center field over Rajai Davis, a big jump in talent. The Giants are definitely not going to make the playoffs even with Aaron Rowand next year.
12-12-07 The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Andruw Jones to a two-year contract
Andruw really struggled last year in Atlanta and now is in a pitchers park. I don’t think he will do very well, but he definitely could help them, since their center fielder would have been Juan Pierre who will get moved to left, taking the job from Matt Kemp. So basically, Jones takes the job from Kemp.
12-12-07 The Houston Astros traded Luke Scott, Matt Albers, Troy Patton, Dennis Sarfate and Mike Costanzo to the Baltimore Orioles for Miguel Tejada
Since Tejada was mentioned in the Mitchell Report, his value goes down, but he’s still a very talented player. But trading all those prospects for one player who was in the Mitchell Report (unknown at the time, though) isn’t very good. Scott can hit for power. Albers throws lots of strike-outs and has had good minor league ERA’s in ’03, ’04, and ’06. Patton has had very good ERA’s for pretty much his whole minor league career. Sarfate has a minor league ERA of 3.68, and Costanzo had 27 homers and 86 RBI’s last year in AAA. Orioles won this trade.
12-14-07 The Toronto Blue Jays signed David Eckstein to a one-year contract
Since it is just a one-year contract, the Blue Jays will probably not get to the playoffs with Eckstein, but he should help them out next year. He will definitely be better than John McDonald would have been this year. David will fill in nicely until they can get a long-term shortstop.
12-14-07 The Oakland Athletics traded Dan Haren and Connor Robertson to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Brett Anderson, Dana Eveland, Greg Smith, Chris Carter, Aaron Cunningham, and Carlos Gonzalez
The A’s will definitely struggle next year, but in a few years they should be better than they would have been. Carlos Gonzalez is a very good prospect and 4 of these players are probably in the A’s top 10 prospects. The Diamondbacks now have two of the best pitchers in baseball in Brandon Webb and Dan Haren. Good trade for both teams.
12-14-07 The Houston Astros traded Chris Burke, Juan Gutierrez, and Chad Qualls to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Jose Valverde
I don’t understand why either team makes this trade. The D’Backs are going for next year and Valverde is one of the best closers in baseball. The Astros completely stunk last year and probably won’t do good next year, so I don’t get why they would give up prospects.
12-20-07 The Seattle Mariners signed Carlos Silva to a four-year contract
Carlos Silva might have had a losing record last year (13-14), but is still a good pitcher. His losing record was because of his team, though. He only had a 4.19 ERA. He will definitely help the Mariners’ not-so-good pitching.
12-24-07 The Florida Marlins signed Luis Castillo
Luis is just going to be a filler-inner for the Marlins, who aren’t going to do well next year. He will probably hit around .300. But why do this when you have Dan Uggla at second? I don’t get it.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win in the Hamilton-Volquez trade?
Rangers – 77%
Reds – 23%
Come back next week for part 3 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Hamilton Acquired
This week I’ll analyze three recent Rangers moves.
Transaction 1:
On December 21st, the Rangers traded pitchers Edinson Volquez and Danny Herrera to the Reds for outfielder Josh Hamilton.
Josh Hamilton – Hamilton is a RANGER!!!! Yeah!!!! After some serious off-the-field issues limiting him to 15 games from 2003 to 2006, he came back last year with a good year with the Reds. In 2003, Josh left the Devil Rays in Spring Training, and only came back twice to work out with the minor league teams. In 2004, MLB suspended Hamilton for 30 days for multiple drug violations. Later on, they changed it to a year for two more violations in just those 30 days. In 2005, Hamilton was DFA’d and passed through waivers. He had been drinking, taking illegal drugs and had three suicide attempts. In 2006, he injured his left knee, and the D’Rays let him go to the Rule 5 draft, where the Reds ended up acquiring him. Last year Hamilton batted .292 with 19 homers and 47 RBI in 298 at-bats. Hamilton has a real chance at becoming a top 3 center fielder in baseball in the next few years. Plus, he has 5 years left where the Rangers will control him. This is a fantastic addition to the Rangers organization. Josh should be our center fielder for years to come.
Edinson Volquez – Edinson can become a great pitcher or be the next Ruben Mateo. His major league ERA is over 7.00, but was 4.50 last year. He’s got incredible potential, though. Last year he worked his way up from High-A to the majors. As he went up in the minor leagues his ERA’s went down going in order, 7.13 (high-A), 3.55 (AA), and 1.41 (AAA). He’s probably going to start off next year as a number 4 or 5 starter.
Danny Ray Herrera – He was drafted in the 45th round. In his two years in the minor leagues, Herrera has an 11-5 record and a 2.65. He may end up being a solid piece of a major league bullpen someday.
Evaluation:It’s tough to give up Volquez, but we needed a center fielder badly. Also, we have more depth with minor league pitchers (Blake Beavan, Fabio Castillo, Thomas Diamond, Armando Galarraga, Matt Harrison, Eric Hurley, Kasey Kiker, Luis Mendoza, A.J. Murray, Josh Rupe) than center fielders (Julio Borbon, Engel Beltre, John Mayberry Jr.). I think that this is a pretty good deal for the Rangers.
Grade: A
Transaction 2:
On December 12th, the Rangers traded minor league infielder Tug Hulett to the Mariners for first baseman Ben Broussard.
Evaluation:
The best Tug Hulett was ever going to be for the Rangers was a utility player. The Rangers really needed a first baseman for this year and Broussard can be that guy. Last year in the majors he batted .275 with 7 home runs and 29 RBI’s in 240 at-bats with the Indians. Tug Hulett hit .275 with 11 homers and 67 RBI’s for triple-A Oklahoma. I think that this is a very good trade, filling a major league need without giving up a high prospect.
Grade: A
Transaction 3:
On December 13th, the Rangers signed Japanese RHP Kazuo Fukumori to a two-year deal. Last year, with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, Kazuo had an ERA of 4.75 with a 4-2 ERA, 17 saves, and 33 strike-outs in 36 innings pitched. Last year, Fukumori was the highest paid player on the team. He didn’t do that well last year, but I think he will do pretty well, given his 2.17 ERA in 2006.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves the past 2 weeks?
Milton Bradley – 72%
Kazuo Fukumori – 8%
Ben Broussard – 6%
Francisco Cordova – 4%
Chris Shelton – 4%
Edgardo Alfonzo – 1%
Levi Romero – 1%
Tug Hulett – 1%
Clayton Hamilton – 1%
All others – 0%
Record amount of votes – 75 - Thanks!!!
Come back next week for an analysis of December MLB Transactions.
Transaction 1:
On December 21st, the Rangers traded pitchers Edinson Volquez and Danny Herrera to the Reds for outfielder Josh Hamilton.
Josh Hamilton – Hamilton is a RANGER!!!! Yeah!!!! After some serious off-the-field issues limiting him to 15 games from 2003 to 2006, he came back last year with a good year with the Reds. In 2003, Josh left the Devil Rays in Spring Training, and only came back twice to work out with the minor league teams. In 2004, MLB suspended Hamilton for 30 days for multiple drug violations. Later on, they changed it to a year for two more violations in just those 30 days. In 2005, Hamilton was DFA’d and passed through waivers. He had been drinking, taking illegal drugs and had three suicide attempts. In 2006, he injured his left knee, and the D’Rays let him go to the Rule 5 draft, where the Reds ended up acquiring him. Last year Hamilton batted .292 with 19 homers and 47 RBI in 298 at-bats. Hamilton has a real chance at becoming a top 3 center fielder in baseball in the next few years. Plus, he has 5 years left where the Rangers will control him. This is a fantastic addition to the Rangers organization. Josh should be our center fielder for years to come.
Edinson Volquez – Edinson can become a great pitcher or be the next Ruben Mateo. His major league ERA is over 7.00, but was 4.50 last year. He’s got incredible potential, though. Last year he worked his way up from High-A to the majors. As he went up in the minor leagues his ERA’s went down going in order, 7.13 (high-A), 3.55 (AA), and 1.41 (AAA). He’s probably going to start off next year as a number 4 or 5 starter.
Danny Ray Herrera – He was drafted in the 45th round. In his two years in the minor leagues, Herrera has an 11-5 record and a 2.65. He may end up being a solid piece of a major league bullpen someday.
Evaluation:It’s tough to give up Volquez, but we needed a center fielder badly. Also, we have more depth with minor league pitchers (Blake Beavan, Fabio Castillo, Thomas Diamond, Armando Galarraga, Matt Harrison, Eric Hurley, Kasey Kiker, Luis Mendoza, A.J. Murray, Josh Rupe) than center fielders (Julio Borbon, Engel Beltre, John Mayberry Jr.). I think that this is a pretty good deal for the Rangers.
Grade: A
Transaction 2:
On December 12th, the Rangers traded minor league infielder Tug Hulett to the Mariners for first baseman Ben Broussard.
Evaluation:
The best Tug Hulett was ever going to be for the Rangers was a utility player. The Rangers really needed a first baseman for this year and Broussard can be that guy. Last year in the majors he batted .275 with 7 home runs and 29 RBI’s in 240 at-bats with the Indians. Tug Hulett hit .275 with 11 homers and 67 RBI’s for triple-A Oklahoma. I think that this is a very good trade, filling a major league need without giving up a high prospect.
Grade: A
Transaction 3:
On December 13th, the Rangers signed Japanese RHP Kazuo Fukumori to a two-year deal. Last year, with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, Kazuo had an ERA of 4.75 with a 4-2 ERA, 17 saves, and 33 strike-outs in 36 innings pitched. Last year, Fukumori was the highest paid player on the team. He didn’t do that well last year, but I think he will do pretty well, given his 2.17 ERA in 2006.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves the past 2 weeks?
Milton Bradley – 72%
Kazuo Fukumori – 8%
Ben Broussard – 6%
Francisco Cordova – 4%
Chris Shelton – 4%
Edgardo Alfonzo – 1%
Levi Romero – 1%
Tug Hulett – 1%
Clayton Hamilton – 1%
All others – 0%
Record amount of votes – 75 - Thanks!!!
Come back next week for an analysis of December MLB Transactions.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Newberg Report Release Party
On Friday the 14th, Jamey Newberg had his Newberg Report Bound Edition Release Party. This time his guests were John Whittleman, German Duran, Blake Beavan, Chris Davis, and Doug Mathis. The Release Party is always very fun and is where Jamey releases his new book for the year. This week I will write about the Release Party.
The event was held at the Texas Rangers Dallas Office downtown. It was very rainy and trafficy getting there. The first thing my dad and I did was get the 2008 Bound Edition. The Bound Edition has every report Jamey did from the whole year, plus all the stats of every player in the Rangers organization and awards and articles by Jamey on the Rangers’ top prospects. It’s always a great book to read and the best reference anywhere on the Ranger farm system. This year, Jamey’s daughter, Erica Newberg, wrote Jamey’s biography at the end of the book. She did a very good job. Also, this year’s cover looks great.
After we got the books, I played my dad in the video game they had there (MLB2K7). We played as the Rangers (me) vs. Reds (my dad). I beat him 4-3, but we only played three innings. We’ve been to the Rangers Dallas Office twice now and they always seem to have that video game set up for anyone to play.
They had free food for the event. The food they had was hot dogs, pickles, sugar cookies, and sodas. It was pretty good and it was nice of the Rangers to provide it. While we ate, we got to talk with some of the other fans, Allen Cordrey, and Jamey’s wife, Ginger, who was there with Max and Erica and some of Erica’s friends.
After all the players got there, the five of them signed autographs. To get an autograph you had to buy a book. All the players were really nice about signing. I also got Erica’s autograph (on the bio page she wrote on her dad).
One of my friends from school, Ryan Wolfson, was also there with his parents. Once we got autographs, we played each other in MLB2K7. We replayed the World Series, I was the Red Sox, and he was the Rockies. I beat him 13-3.
The Q&A session started pretty soon after we finished. Here are some of the questions and answers:
Q: John: Did you really predict that you’d hit a homer when your suspended regional semifinal game against the Mustangs resumed? Can you tell us the story?
A: John said that he did. He also mentioned he had predicted that he’d homer on the 1st pitch, which he did. He led off the bottom of the12th when the game resumed and after one pitch, the game was over. He said he was no Babe Ruth and wouldn’t be calling any more shots.
Q: John and German: What was it like playing in the futures game?
A: John said it was unbelievable and that it was playing with the best of the best. German said that it felt like the big leagues, with 10,000 people watching.
Q: German: Why didn’t you sign with the Reds after being drafted in 2003?
A: German said that he wanted to go to school, and that he was a little scared because he was 17.
Q: German: What was the key to your offensive success this year?
A: He said that it was because he had a development plan. He was an aggressive hitter, but then became more selective. He also said that last year he tried to pull the ball every time, but that this year he tried to go with the ball. When he was successful with that, pitchers had to pitch him differently and gave him pitches that he could pull successfully.
Q: Doug: Why did you not sign when you were drafted out of Arizona High School or when you where drafted out of Central Arizona State?
A: Doug said he likes college and that he likes Central Arizona. He also said he ended up going to the Big 12 and that he doesn’t regret it.
Q: Chris: Why did you go to Navarro Junior College instead of staying with UT?
A: He said that he had some off-the-field problems at UT and that he wasn’t focused. He also said he was more at home in Navarro.
Q: Chris: Do you prefer pitching or playing the infield?
A: He misses pitching in some ways, but in other ways he doesn’t. He said he has more fun playing the infield.
Q: Blake: What was it like playing on the USA Junior National Team and going to Cuba?
A: Blake said that it was a good experience and that it was fun. He said it made him appreciate what he has, since there were so many poor people in Cuba.
Q: All: What role do you want to play with the Rangers and what role do you think you’ll play?
A: Everyone said that they didn’t really care what role they play as long as they get to the big leagues. They all said that they wanted to help the team. Doug said that he sees himself realistically as a back of the rotation guy. Chris said he thinks he can be a corner infielder or corner outfielder.
Here’s some information from other questions:
- Blake said that he had no idea where he was going to start the season.
- When asked what goes through their heads when they hear trade rumors, Chris said that you never want to see someone go but that trades do open up the door for other people.
- John was asked what he thinks of Elvis Andrus. He said that Elvis is a good player who can hit and run and is an all-around player. He also said that he speaks really good English.
- When asked about his hitting streak, Chris said that he didn’t even know about it until he was more than 20 games into it.
- Someone asked who everyone looked up to. John said he looked up to Derek Jeter and Manny Ramirez. German said Marcus Giles, Blake said Randy Johnson, Chris said Jim Thome, and Doug said he used to look up to Nolan Ryan, but that now he looks up to Brandon Webb (because he’s the same type of pitcher as Doug).
- When asked who they’ve played against or with that they knew would be great, John said Chris Davis.
After that it was over but we hung out and talked to Jamey, Scott Lucas, Mike Rhyner (from The Ticket), and Eleanor Czajka (and her mom) for a while. Jim Sundberg was also there but we didn’t get to talk to him much.
The night was a lot of fun like always. I would like to thank Jamey for putting it on every year. If you haven’t been before, you should go when he does it next year.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves this past week?
Milton Bradley – 90%
Chris Shelton – 7%
Freddy Guzman - 3%
Come back next week for the December Transactions Report, including an analysis of this week’s Rangers transactions (Kazuo Fukumori and the Ben Broussard trade).
The event was held at the Texas Rangers Dallas Office downtown. It was very rainy and trafficy getting there. The first thing my dad and I did was get the 2008 Bound Edition. The Bound Edition has every report Jamey did from the whole year, plus all the stats of every player in the Rangers organization and awards and articles by Jamey on the Rangers’ top prospects. It’s always a great book to read and the best reference anywhere on the Ranger farm system. This year, Jamey’s daughter, Erica Newberg, wrote Jamey’s biography at the end of the book. She did a very good job. Also, this year’s cover looks great.
After we got the books, I played my dad in the video game they had there (MLB2K7). We played as the Rangers (me) vs. Reds (my dad). I beat him 4-3, but we only played three innings. We’ve been to the Rangers Dallas Office twice now and they always seem to have that video game set up for anyone to play.
They had free food for the event. The food they had was hot dogs, pickles, sugar cookies, and sodas. It was pretty good and it was nice of the Rangers to provide it. While we ate, we got to talk with some of the other fans, Allen Cordrey, and Jamey’s wife, Ginger, who was there with Max and Erica and some of Erica’s friends.
After all the players got there, the five of them signed autographs. To get an autograph you had to buy a book. All the players were really nice about signing. I also got Erica’s autograph (on the bio page she wrote on her dad).
One of my friends from school, Ryan Wolfson, was also there with his parents. Once we got autographs, we played each other in MLB2K7. We replayed the World Series, I was the Red Sox, and he was the Rockies. I beat him 13-3.
The Q&A session started pretty soon after we finished. Here are some of the questions and answers:
Q: John: Did you really predict that you’d hit a homer when your suspended regional semifinal game against the Mustangs resumed? Can you tell us the story?
A: John said that he did. He also mentioned he had predicted that he’d homer on the 1st pitch, which he did. He led off the bottom of the12th when the game resumed and after one pitch, the game was over. He said he was no Babe Ruth and wouldn’t be calling any more shots.
Q: John and German: What was it like playing in the futures game?
A: John said it was unbelievable and that it was playing with the best of the best. German said that it felt like the big leagues, with 10,000 people watching.
Q: German: Why didn’t you sign with the Reds after being drafted in 2003?
A: German said that he wanted to go to school, and that he was a little scared because he was 17.
Q: German: What was the key to your offensive success this year?
A: He said that it was because he had a development plan. He was an aggressive hitter, but then became more selective. He also said that last year he tried to pull the ball every time, but that this year he tried to go with the ball. When he was successful with that, pitchers had to pitch him differently and gave him pitches that he could pull successfully.
Q: Doug: Why did you not sign when you were drafted out of Arizona High School or when you where drafted out of Central Arizona State?
A: Doug said he likes college and that he likes Central Arizona. He also said he ended up going to the Big 12 and that he doesn’t regret it.
Q: Chris: Why did you go to Navarro Junior College instead of staying with UT?
A: He said that he had some off-the-field problems at UT and that he wasn’t focused. He also said he was more at home in Navarro.
Q: Chris: Do you prefer pitching or playing the infield?
A: He misses pitching in some ways, but in other ways he doesn’t. He said he has more fun playing the infield.
Q: Blake: What was it like playing on the USA Junior National Team and going to Cuba?
A: Blake said that it was a good experience and that it was fun. He said it made him appreciate what he has, since there were so many poor people in Cuba.
Q: All: What role do you want to play with the Rangers and what role do you think you’ll play?
A: Everyone said that they didn’t really care what role they play as long as they get to the big leagues. They all said that they wanted to help the team. Doug said that he sees himself realistically as a back of the rotation guy. Chris said he thinks he can be a corner infielder or corner outfielder.
Here’s some information from other questions:
- Blake said that he had no idea where he was going to start the season.
- When asked what goes through their heads when they hear trade rumors, Chris said that you never want to see someone go but that trades do open up the door for other people.
- John was asked what he thinks of Elvis Andrus. He said that Elvis is a good player who can hit and run and is an all-around player. He also said that he speaks really good English.
- When asked about his hitting streak, Chris said that he didn’t even know about it until he was more than 20 games into it.
- Someone asked who everyone looked up to. John said he looked up to Derek Jeter and Manny Ramirez. German said Marcus Giles, Blake said Randy Johnson, Chris said Jim Thome, and Doug said he used to look up to Nolan Ryan, but that now he looks up to Brandon Webb (because he’s the same type of pitcher as Doug).
- When asked who they’ve played against or with that they knew would be great, John said Chris Davis.
After that it was over but we hung out and talked to Jamey, Scott Lucas, Mike Rhyner (from The Ticket), and Eleanor Czajka (and her mom) for a while. Jim Sundberg was also there but we didn’t get to talk to him much.
The night was a lot of fun like always. I would like to thank Jamey for putting it on every year. If you haven’t been before, you should go when he does it next year.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player in the Rangers' moves this past week?
Milton Bradley – 90%
Chris Shelton – 7%
Freddy Guzman - 3%
Come back next week for the December Transactions Report, including an analysis of this week’s Rangers transactions (Kazuo Fukumori and the Ben Broussard trade).
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Shelton Acquired and Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 2
This week, I will analyze the Freddy Guzman trade and continue my analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades.
On December 6th, the Rangers traded Freddy Guzman for Chris Shelton.
Evaluation: I think that this is a win. Freddy Guzman is a scrappy, speedy guy who hasn’t come around for the Rangers. He only had 13 at-bats during parts of two seasons with them and obviously wasn’t part of their plans. Chris Shelton had a very good year in 2005 and can hit for power against righties. He can really help out at 1st base and goes to spring training with a chance to be a starter at that spot. This is a good trade because we gave up someone who wasn’t part of our plans with little potential for someone with good potential to help us.
Grade: A
Also, the Rangers signed Milton Bradley to a 1-year contract for $5 dollars. I think he will be a good center field addition. He’s good defensively (.983 career fielding percentage) and can play well offensively. He has a career .273 average over 8 seasons but has had averages as high as .306 (last season) and .290 (2005). He has hit as many as 19 home runs in a season (2004).
This is part 2 of an analysis of the trades Tom Grieve made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the end of 1985. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
7. 6-20-85 The Detroit Tigers traded Duane James (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Frank Tanana.
Loss – Duane James never made it to the majors. After being traded, Frank Tanana had ERA’s of 3.34, 4.16, 3.91, 4.21, 3.58, 5.31, 3.77, 4.39, and 4.35. Not a very good trade.
Record: 2-3-2
8. 7-19-85 The Cincinnati Reds traded a player to be named later and Duane Walker to the Texas Rangers for Buddy Bell. The Cincinnati Reds sent Jeff Russell (July 23, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Win - Duane only hit .174 as a Ranger but Jeff Russell was incredible for us. He played 6 and a half very good years of relief for the Rangers. He was a 2-time All-Star, won the Rolaids Relief Man Award and led the league in saves, all as a Ranger. Buddy Bell didn’t do too much after the trade, his most RBI’s were 75 and best batting average was .284.
Record: 3-3-2
9. 8-28-85 The Texas Rangers traded Cliff Johnson to the Toronto Blue Jays for players to be named later. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Matt Williams (August 29, 1985), Jeff Mays (minors) (August 29, 1985), and Greg Ferlenda (minors) (November 14, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Cliff Johnson didn’t do much after the trade, only playing 1 more year. Matt Williams only pitched 26 innings as a Ranger, Jeff Mays never made it to the majors, and neither did Greg Ferlenda.
Record: 3-3-3
10. 9-13-85 The Philadelphia Phillies traded Rick Surhoff to the Texas Rangers for Dave Stewart.
Loss - Rick Surhoff only pitched 8 and a third innings as a Ranger. Dave Stewart had 5 years of over 225 innings pitched after the trade with ERA’s in those years of 3.68, 3.23, 3.32, 2.56, but then 5.18. Interestingly, Stewart only pitched 16.6 innings for the Phillies over parts of two seasons (with ERA’s of 6.23 and 6.57) before they released him. He then signed with the A’s, where he had some great years.
Record: 3-4-3
11. 11-2-85 The Montreal Expos traded Pete Incaviglia to the Texas Rangers for Jim Anderson and Bob Sebra.
Win - Pete Incavilia had 5 good years with the Rangers and a total of 124 home runs in those 5 years. Jim Anderson didn’t play in the majors after the trade, and Bob Sebra only had a career total of 366 and two-thirds innings pitched over 94 games in 6 years.
Record: 4-4-3
12. 11-25-85 The Chicago White Sox traded a player to be named later, Ed Correa, and Scott Fletcher to the Texas Rangers for Wayne Tolleson and Dave Schmidt. The Chicago White Sox sent Jose Mota (December 11, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Ed Correa only played two years with the Rangers and didn’t pitch very well either (ERA’s of 4.23 and 7.59 during two seasons). Scott Fletcher had 3 good years as a Ranger, with batting averages of .300, .287, and .276. Jose Mota has 38 career at-bats. Wayne Tolleson only had 9 career home runs and the best batting average he had after the trade was .265. Dave Schmidt pitched pretty well for the next 3 years after the trade, with ERA’s of 3.31, 3.77, and 3.40 in those three years.
Record: 4-4-4
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in last week’s trades?
Mitch Williams – 52%
Toby Harrah - 41%
Don Slaught – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for a write-up on Friday’s Newberg Bound Edition Release Party.
On December 6th, the Rangers traded Freddy Guzman for Chris Shelton.
Evaluation: I think that this is a win. Freddy Guzman is a scrappy, speedy guy who hasn’t come around for the Rangers. He only had 13 at-bats during parts of two seasons with them and obviously wasn’t part of their plans. Chris Shelton had a very good year in 2005 and can hit for power against righties. He can really help out at 1st base and goes to spring training with a chance to be a starter at that spot. This is a good trade because we gave up someone who wasn’t part of our plans with little potential for someone with good potential to help us.
Grade: A
Also, the Rangers signed Milton Bradley to a 1-year contract for $5 dollars. I think he will be a good center field addition. He’s good defensively (.983 career fielding percentage) and can play well offensively. He has a career .273 average over 8 seasons but has had averages as high as .306 (last season) and .290 (2005). He has hit as many as 19 home runs in a season (2004).
This is part 2 of an analysis of the trades Tom Grieve made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the end of 1985. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
7. 6-20-85 The Detroit Tigers traded Duane James (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Frank Tanana.
Loss – Duane James never made it to the majors. After being traded, Frank Tanana had ERA’s of 3.34, 4.16, 3.91, 4.21, 3.58, 5.31, 3.77, 4.39, and 4.35. Not a very good trade.
Record: 2-3-2
8. 7-19-85 The Cincinnati Reds traded a player to be named later and Duane Walker to the Texas Rangers for Buddy Bell. The Cincinnati Reds sent Jeff Russell (July 23, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Win - Duane only hit .174 as a Ranger but Jeff Russell was incredible for us. He played 6 and a half very good years of relief for the Rangers. He was a 2-time All-Star, won the Rolaids Relief Man Award and led the league in saves, all as a Ranger. Buddy Bell didn’t do too much after the trade, his most RBI’s were 75 and best batting average was .284.
Record: 3-3-2
9. 8-28-85 The Texas Rangers traded Cliff Johnson to the Toronto Blue Jays for players to be named later. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Matt Williams (August 29, 1985), Jeff Mays (minors) (August 29, 1985), and Greg Ferlenda (minors) (November 14, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Cliff Johnson didn’t do much after the trade, only playing 1 more year. Matt Williams only pitched 26 innings as a Ranger, Jeff Mays never made it to the majors, and neither did Greg Ferlenda.
Record: 3-3-3
10. 9-13-85 The Philadelphia Phillies traded Rick Surhoff to the Texas Rangers for Dave Stewart.
Loss - Rick Surhoff only pitched 8 and a third innings as a Ranger. Dave Stewart had 5 years of over 225 innings pitched after the trade with ERA’s in those years of 3.68, 3.23, 3.32, 2.56, but then 5.18. Interestingly, Stewart only pitched 16.6 innings for the Phillies over parts of two seasons (with ERA’s of 6.23 and 6.57) before they released him. He then signed with the A’s, where he had some great years.
Record: 3-4-3
11. 11-2-85 The Montreal Expos traded Pete Incaviglia to the Texas Rangers for Jim Anderson and Bob Sebra.
Win - Pete Incavilia had 5 good years with the Rangers and a total of 124 home runs in those 5 years. Jim Anderson didn’t play in the majors after the trade, and Bob Sebra only had a career total of 366 and two-thirds innings pitched over 94 games in 6 years.
Record: 4-4-3
12. 11-25-85 The Chicago White Sox traded a player to be named later, Ed Correa, and Scott Fletcher to the Texas Rangers for Wayne Tolleson and Dave Schmidt. The Chicago White Sox sent Jose Mota (December 11, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Ed Correa only played two years with the Rangers and didn’t pitch very well either (ERA’s of 4.23 and 7.59 during two seasons). Scott Fletcher had 3 good years as a Ranger, with batting averages of .300, .287, and .276. Jose Mota has 38 career at-bats. Wayne Tolleson only had 9 career home runs and the best batting average he had after the trade was .265. Dave Schmidt pitched pretty well for the next 3 years after the trade, with ERA’s of 3.31, 3.77, and 3.40 in those three years.
Record: 4-4-4
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in last week’s trades?
Mitch Williams – 52%
Toby Harrah - 41%
Don Slaught – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for a write-up on Friday’s Newberg Bound Edition Release Party.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Tom Grieve Trade Analysis Part 1
This week I’m starting a multi-part analysis of all the trades Tom Grieve made when he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the first half of his first year as GM. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
1. 11-7-84 The Montreal Expos traded Chris Welsh to the Texas Rangers for Dave Hostetler.
Win – Dave Hostetler didn’t play in the majors again after the trade until ’88, and even then it was with Pittsburgh and only for 6 games. The Rangers got one good year out of Chris Welsh. Chris had a 4.13 ERA in 76 innings pitched, in his one year as a Ranger.
Record: 1-0-0
2. 1-18-85 As part of a 4-team trade: The Texas Rangers sent a player to be named later and Danny Darwin to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Milwaukee Brewers sent Jim Sundberg to the Kansas City Royals. The New York Mets sent Tim Leary to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Kansas City Royals sent Don Slaught to the Texas Rangers. The Kansas City Royals sent Frank Wills to the New York Mets. The Texas Rangers sent Bill Nance (minors) (January 30, 1985) to the Milwaukee Brewers to complete the trade. (From a Rangers standpoint, this was basically Danny Darwin and Bill Nance for Don Slaught.)
Loss – Bill Nance never played in the majors. But Danny Darwin pitched pretty well throughout his 21-year career including 11 years after the trade (career ERA of 3.84). He had an ERA under 4.00 (3.80 and 3.17) in both of the two years he spent with Milwaukee after the trade. In the three years Don Slaught was here, the most at-bats he got in a year was 343. His playing time decreased each of the three years he was here (343 AB to 314 to 237) as did he batting average (.280 to .264 to .224). He was good defensively behind the plate while here but I would rather have a solid pitcher than a part-time catcher.
Record: 1-1-0
3. 2-27-85 The New York Yankees traded Toby Harrah to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later and Bill Sample. The Texas Rangers sent Eric Dersin (minors) (July 14, 1985) to the New York Yankees to complete the trade.
Loss – After the trade Toby Harrah did almost nothing for us, batting .270 and .218 in the two year he played for us after the trade, with little power (16 homers over two years). He played in only 126 games in 1985 and 95 games in 1986 (his last year in the majors). Bill Sample was a solid back-up for the two years following the trade (.288 in 59 games in 1985 and .285 in 92 games in 1986) and Eric Dersin never made it to the majors.
Record: 1-2-0
4. 4-4-85 The Seattle Mariners traded Orlando Mercado to the Texas Rangers for Donnie Scott.
Tie - Orlando Mercado only had 102 at-bats as a Ranger. Donnie Scott had a .217 career batting average on 443 career at-bats.
Record: 1-2-1
5. 4-4-85 The Texas Rangers traded Kevin Buckley to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later. The Cleveland Indians sent Jeff Moronko (April 29, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Kevin Buckley only had 7 career at-bats. Jeff Moronko only had 30.
Record: 1-2-2
6. 4-6-85 The San Diego Padres traded Mitch Williams to the Texas Rangers for Randy Asadoor.
Win – Randy Asadoor only had 55 career at-bats. Mitch Williams pitched three good years for the Rangers with ERA’s of 3.58, 3.23, and 4.63.
Record: 2-2-2
Results of last week’s poll:
What team do you think has had the best off-season so far?
Angels – 83%
Red Sox – 8%
Tigers – 4%
Other – 4%
All other teams – 0%
Come back next week for Part 2 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.
1. 11-7-84 The Montreal Expos traded Chris Welsh to the Texas Rangers for Dave Hostetler.
Win – Dave Hostetler didn’t play in the majors again after the trade until ’88, and even then it was with Pittsburgh and only for 6 games. The Rangers got one good year out of Chris Welsh. Chris had a 4.13 ERA in 76 innings pitched, in his one year as a Ranger.
Record: 1-0-0
2. 1-18-85 As part of a 4-team trade: The Texas Rangers sent a player to be named later and Danny Darwin to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Milwaukee Brewers sent Jim Sundberg to the Kansas City Royals. The New York Mets sent Tim Leary to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Kansas City Royals sent Don Slaught to the Texas Rangers. The Kansas City Royals sent Frank Wills to the New York Mets. The Texas Rangers sent Bill Nance (minors) (January 30, 1985) to the Milwaukee Brewers to complete the trade. (From a Rangers standpoint, this was basically Danny Darwin and Bill Nance for Don Slaught.)
Loss – Bill Nance never played in the majors. But Danny Darwin pitched pretty well throughout his 21-year career including 11 years after the trade (career ERA of 3.84). He had an ERA under 4.00 (3.80 and 3.17) in both of the two years he spent with Milwaukee after the trade. In the three years Don Slaught was here, the most at-bats he got in a year was 343. His playing time decreased each of the three years he was here (343 AB to 314 to 237) as did he batting average (.280 to .264 to .224). He was good defensively behind the plate while here but I would rather have a solid pitcher than a part-time catcher.
Record: 1-1-0
3. 2-27-85 The New York Yankees traded Toby Harrah to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later and Bill Sample. The Texas Rangers sent Eric Dersin (minors) (July 14, 1985) to the New York Yankees to complete the trade.
Loss – After the trade Toby Harrah did almost nothing for us, batting .270 and .218 in the two year he played for us after the trade, with little power (16 homers over two years). He played in only 126 games in 1985 and 95 games in 1986 (his last year in the majors). Bill Sample was a solid back-up for the two years following the trade (.288 in 59 games in 1985 and .285 in 92 games in 1986) and Eric Dersin never made it to the majors.
Record: 1-2-0
4. 4-4-85 The Seattle Mariners traded Orlando Mercado to the Texas Rangers for Donnie Scott.
Tie - Orlando Mercado only had 102 at-bats as a Ranger. Donnie Scott had a .217 career batting average on 443 career at-bats.
Record: 1-2-1
5. 4-4-85 The Texas Rangers traded Kevin Buckley to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later. The Cleveland Indians sent Jeff Moronko (April 29, 1985) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - Kevin Buckley only had 7 career at-bats. Jeff Moronko only had 30.
Record: 1-2-2
6. 4-6-85 The San Diego Padres traded Mitch Williams to the Texas Rangers for Randy Asadoor.
Win – Randy Asadoor only had 55 career at-bats. Mitch Williams pitched three good years for the Rangers with ERA’s of 3.58, 3.23, and 4.63.
Record: 2-2-2
Results of last week’s poll:
What team do you think has had the best off-season so far?
Angels – 83%
Red Sox – 8%
Tigers – 4%
Other – 4%
All other teams – 0%
Come back next week for Part 2 of the Tom Grieve Trade Analysis.
Saturday, November 24, 2007
November Transactions
This week I will analyze all the major transactions so far in November. I will do this once every month during the off-season.
11/2 Red Sox - Acquired OF Sean Danielson from St. Louis to complete the Joel Pineiro trade on July 31.
Effect: Sean is a scrappy hitter who has only started two years in the minors. In those 2 years he has hit .249 and .291. He has almost no power, only hitting 4 home runs in 928 career minor league at-bats. He plays great defensively though. He will probably only become a 4th/5th outfielder.
11/6 Red Sox – Signed Curt Schilling to a one year contract
Effect: Just keeps them closer to last year’s team.
11/7 Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros – Phillies acquired RHP Brad Lidge and INF Eric Bruntlett from the Astros in exchange for OF Michael Bourn.
Phillies Effect: The Phillies needed a good closer and Brad Lidge should be able to give them that. Eric Bruntlett will upgrade their bench and back up Rollins and Utley.
Astros Effect: The Astros lose their only closer in Brad Lidge. They also lose a pretty good bench player in Eric Bruntlett. They’re obviously trying to build up for the future. Bourn hasn’t hit very well with a career .268 batting average in the majors. Also he has almost no power, only hitting 1 major league home run in 122 at-bats. But Bourn can field well, as he hasn’t made an error since AA in 2005 when he had 1.
Winner: Phillies
11/12 Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs – Tigers acquired OF Jacque Jones from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for INF Omar Infante.
Tigers Effect: The Tigers now have an upgrade at left field as Jones will replace Marcus Thames for the starting job, now making their outfield one of the best in baseball with Jones, Granderson, and Ordonez. But the Tigers bench took a hit, because with Omar Infante gone Ryan Raburn will have to back up CF, RF, 3B, and 2B.
Cubs Effect: Losing Jones will move Daryle Ward into a starting spot and, although he did good last year, he only had 110 at-bats so you can’t really trust him. Omar Infante won’t even start for the Cubs.
Winner: Tigers
11/14 Milwaukee Brewers - Signed LHP Randy Choate to a one-year contract.
Effect: Randy Choate has not pitched very well so far in his career but will help out the Brewers bullpen.
11/16 Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves - Houston acquired RHP Oscar Villarreal from the Braves in exchange for OF Josh Anderson
Astros Effect: The Astros definitely improved their bullpen. Oscar is a pretty good relief pitcher, with a 4.25 ERA last year and a 3.61 ERA in ’06. But losing Anderson is a hit, as he’s a very good prospect and it seems like they’re trying for the future. I don’t understand why they would make the trade, especially with Michael Bourn starting in center.
Braves Effect: Their bullpen will definitely go way down this year without Mahay and now Villarreal. But without Andruw Jones, they needed a starting center fielder and Anderson can be that guy. He’s got some serious speed, getting 78 stolen bases in 2005. He also hit .358 last year. But Josh has no power.
Winner: Braves
11/19 Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – White Sox acquired SS Orlando Cabrera and cash considerations from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for RHP Jon Garland.
White Sox Effect: The White Sox pitching really took a major hit. This trade makes John Danks, with stats of 5.50 ERA and a 6-13 record last year, the #3 starter. But with Juan Uribe gone, Cabrera will be a great upgrade from Alex Cintron starting.
Angels Effect: Jon Garland will take Bartolo Colon’s #3 spot in the rotation. But he’s an upgrade from Colon. Garland doesn’t get injured as much and has better stats (but not against the Rangers). Losing Cabrera will move Maicer Izturis into the starting role though.
Winner: Angels
11/19 Atlanta Braves - Signed LHP Tom Glavine to a one-year contract for the 2008 season.
Effect: Tom Glavine will definitely help the pitching staff and should move into the #3 spot before Chuck James. Tom could make the Braves a playoff team next year.
11/20 New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers – Mets acquired C Johnny Estrada from the Brewers in exchange for RHP Guillermo Mota.
Mets Effect: With Paul Lo Duca gone, Estrada will be a much better starter than Ramon Castro. Last year Estrada hit .278 with 10 homers and 54 RBI’s. Losing Mota will be tough, since last year he pitched almost 60 innings of relief, even though he didn’t have a good ERA.
Brewers Effect: Getting Mota will definitely improve their not-so-good bullpen (since Cordero left). But losing Estrada will hurt, because that moves Mike Rivera into a starting role.
Winner: Mets
11/22 Anaheim Angels – Angels sign Torii Hunter to a five-year deal.
Effect: Hunter will improve the already strong Angels. With Gary Matthews’ poor year last year, Torii will definitely help. It will be much harder for the Rangers to win the division in 2009, which is the year they’re targeting to compete. But on the bright side, with all the money the Angels are paying him, maybe they can’t afford too much else.
Results of last week’s poll:
Where do you think Torii Hunter will sign?
Rangers – 56%
Other – 21%
White Sox – 17%
Twins – 4%
Yankees – 0%
Come back next week for part 1 of an analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades as Rangers GM.
11/2 Red Sox - Acquired OF Sean Danielson from St. Louis to complete the Joel Pineiro trade on July 31.
Effect: Sean is a scrappy hitter who has only started two years in the minors. In those 2 years he has hit .249 and .291. He has almost no power, only hitting 4 home runs in 928 career minor league at-bats. He plays great defensively though. He will probably only become a 4th/5th outfielder.
11/6 Red Sox – Signed Curt Schilling to a one year contract
Effect: Just keeps them closer to last year’s team.
11/7 Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros – Phillies acquired RHP Brad Lidge and INF Eric Bruntlett from the Astros in exchange for OF Michael Bourn.
Phillies Effect: The Phillies needed a good closer and Brad Lidge should be able to give them that. Eric Bruntlett will upgrade their bench and back up Rollins and Utley.
Astros Effect: The Astros lose their only closer in Brad Lidge. They also lose a pretty good bench player in Eric Bruntlett. They’re obviously trying to build up for the future. Bourn hasn’t hit very well with a career .268 batting average in the majors. Also he has almost no power, only hitting 1 major league home run in 122 at-bats. But Bourn can field well, as he hasn’t made an error since AA in 2005 when he had 1.
Winner: Phillies
11/12 Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs – Tigers acquired OF Jacque Jones from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for INF Omar Infante.
Tigers Effect: The Tigers now have an upgrade at left field as Jones will replace Marcus Thames for the starting job, now making their outfield one of the best in baseball with Jones, Granderson, and Ordonez. But the Tigers bench took a hit, because with Omar Infante gone Ryan Raburn will have to back up CF, RF, 3B, and 2B.
Cubs Effect: Losing Jones will move Daryle Ward into a starting spot and, although he did good last year, he only had 110 at-bats so you can’t really trust him. Omar Infante won’t even start for the Cubs.
Winner: Tigers
11/14 Milwaukee Brewers - Signed LHP Randy Choate to a one-year contract.
Effect: Randy Choate has not pitched very well so far in his career but will help out the Brewers bullpen.
11/16 Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves - Houston acquired RHP Oscar Villarreal from the Braves in exchange for OF Josh Anderson
Astros Effect: The Astros definitely improved their bullpen. Oscar is a pretty good relief pitcher, with a 4.25 ERA last year and a 3.61 ERA in ’06. But losing Anderson is a hit, as he’s a very good prospect and it seems like they’re trying for the future. I don’t understand why they would make the trade, especially with Michael Bourn starting in center.
Braves Effect: Their bullpen will definitely go way down this year without Mahay and now Villarreal. But without Andruw Jones, they needed a starting center fielder and Anderson can be that guy. He’s got some serious speed, getting 78 stolen bases in 2005. He also hit .358 last year. But Josh has no power.
Winner: Braves
11/19 Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – White Sox acquired SS Orlando Cabrera and cash considerations from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for RHP Jon Garland.
White Sox Effect: The White Sox pitching really took a major hit. This trade makes John Danks, with stats of 5.50 ERA and a 6-13 record last year, the #3 starter. But with Juan Uribe gone, Cabrera will be a great upgrade from Alex Cintron starting.
Angels Effect: Jon Garland will take Bartolo Colon’s #3 spot in the rotation. But he’s an upgrade from Colon. Garland doesn’t get injured as much and has better stats (but not against the Rangers). Losing Cabrera will move Maicer Izturis into the starting role though.
Winner: Angels
11/19 Atlanta Braves - Signed LHP Tom Glavine to a one-year contract for the 2008 season.
Effect: Tom Glavine will definitely help the pitching staff and should move into the #3 spot before Chuck James. Tom could make the Braves a playoff team next year.
11/20 New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers – Mets acquired C Johnny Estrada from the Brewers in exchange for RHP Guillermo Mota.
Mets Effect: With Paul Lo Duca gone, Estrada will be a much better starter than Ramon Castro. Last year Estrada hit .278 with 10 homers and 54 RBI’s. Losing Mota will be tough, since last year he pitched almost 60 innings of relief, even though he didn’t have a good ERA.
Brewers Effect: Getting Mota will definitely improve their not-so-good bullpen (since Cordero left). But losing Estrada will hurt, because that moves Mike Rivera into a starting role.
Winner: Mets
11/22 Anaheim Angels – Angels sign Torii Hunter to a five-year deal.
Effect: Hunter will improve the already strong Angels. With Gary Matthews’ poor year last year, Torii will definitely help. It will be much harder for the Rangers to win the division in 2009, which is the year they’re targeting to compete. But on the bright side, with all the money the Angels are paying him, maybe they can’t afford too much else.
Results of last week’s poll:
Where do you think Torii Hunter will sign?
Rangers – 56%
Other – 21%
White Sox – 17%
Twins – 4%
Yankees – 0%
Come back next week for part 1 of an analysis of Tom Grieve’s trades as Rangers GM.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Ballpark Facts
When my dad and I go to see games out of town, we like to go to the locations of old major league ballparks. We’ve put together a list of all the ballparks used from 1901 until now, their location, and what’s left at the location of the old ballpark. My dad’s been to almost all of the old ballpark sites and put most of the facts in this list together. I added my personal experiences and opinions. My dad wrote a book called ‘IT Auditing: Using Controls to Protect Information Assets’. You can buy his book at amazon.com (there’s also a link to it on the left side of this blog in my links section).
This information is based on our personal experiences. If you know of any changes to what we saw or of anything we missed, please leave a comment.
We used http://www.ballparks.com/ to get the locations of the old ballparks. The ‘Location’ information for each ballpark is copied from there. That’s a great site to get lots of information on all ballparks past, present, and future.
It’s really fun to go see where the old ballparks used to be, especially the ones that still have pieces of the old ballpark left, so I recommend this for anyone going to an out-of-town game.
Arlington, Texas
Arlington Stadium:
Home of: Texas Rangers 1972-93
Demolished: 1994
Location: Adjacent to Six Flags over Texas on the west side of the amusement park in the center of a parking lot bound by Stadium Drive E (E), E Randol Mill Road (S), Pennant Drive (W) and Copeland Road and I-30 (N).
Remnants: Site is now part of the parking lot for the Ballpark in Arlington. There’s nothing there marking where the old ballpark used to be. The Rangers should mark the old stadium’s basepaths or something like that.
The Ballpark in Arlington (also called Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and Ameriquest Field)
Home of: Texas Rangers 1994-present
Anaheim, California
Angel Stadium (formerly Anaheim Stadium and Edison International Field)
Home of: California/Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels 1966-present
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta Fulton County Stadium
Home of: Atlanta Braves 1966-1996
Demolished 1997
Location: Left field (N by NE), Fulton Street and Interstate 20; third base (W by NW), Washington Street, Interstate 75/85, and Pulliam Street; first base (S by SW), Georgia Avenue; right field (E by SE), Capitol Avenue.
Remnants: The site of Fulton County Stadium is now a parking lot for Turner Field. Outlines of home plate, the base paths, the pitchers mound, the bases, and the outfield wall are all marked. There’s a sign commemorating the location of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run. This is a great example of what teams can do and the sort of thing the Rangers should do.
Turner Field
Home of: Atlanta Braves 1997-present
Baltimore, Maryland
Oriole Park
Home of: Baltimore Orioles (later New York Highlanders/Yankees) 1901-02
Location: The ballpark faced a few degrees west of due south. East 29th Street ran directly behind home plate and the grandstand on the north side of the field. York (Greenmount) Avenue ran from behind the grandstand beyond third base on the east side of the park. Barclay Street ran from behind the grandstand beyond first base on the west side of the park. The outfield was enclosed by Barclay Street in right field, York (Greenmount) Avenue in a small part of left field and by what was to become 28th Street in left and center fields.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but I don’t think there’s anything there.
Memorial Stadium
Home of: Baltimore Orioles 1954-91
Demolished 2001
Location: Center field (N), East 36th Street; third base (W), Ellerslie Avenue; home plate (S), 1000 East 33rd Street; section of 33rd Street near ballpark is known as Babe Ruth Plaza; first base (E), Ednor Road.
Remnants: We’re not aware of anything at the old site marking that the old ballpark was there, but we haven’t been back to the site since before they tore the ballpark down. Part of the words from the old Memorial Wall can be seen outside their new ballpark.
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Home of: Baltimore Orioles 1992-present
Boston, Massachessetts
South End Grounds (also called Walpole Street Grounds, Union Baseball Grounds, Boston Baseball Grounds)
South End Grounds I: 1871-1887, demolished 1887
South End Grounds II: 1888-1894, burned down
South End Grounds III: 1894-1914, demolished
Home of: Boston Braves (also called Red Stockings, Red Caps, Doves, Rustlers, Beaneaters) 1871-1914
Location: Columbus and Walpole. Walpole ran behind home plate, Columbus along the 1st base side of the field. The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad tracks ran along the 3rd base side of the field. Behind the outfield was a railroad roundhouse, and behind that was Gainsborough.
Remnants: The site is now occupied by the Ruggles Station on the Orange Line. There’s nothing there to indicate that there used to be a ballpark there.
Huntington Avenue Grounds
Home of: Boston Red Sox (also called Pilgrims, Americans, Puritans, Plymouth Rocks, Somersets) 1901-11
Location: Left field (NW), Huntington Avenue; third base (SW), Bryant (Rogers) Street, now Forsyth Street; first base (SE) New Gravelly Pt. and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad tracks; right field (NE), New Gravelly Pt.
Remnants: The site is now occupied by Northeastern University. There’s a plaque commemorating the location of where the left field foul line used to be on the outside of a building built on that location. It was put there in 1956. In 1993, a statue of Cy Young was placed where the pitchers mound used to be and a home plate plaque was placed where home plate used to be. The statue and home plate plaque are at a really nice location, being inside a little grassy area with park benches on the campus. This is one of the best former ballpark sites because of the statue and the plaques.
Fenway Park
Home of: Boston Red Sox 1912-present
Braves Field
Home of: Boston Braves (also called Bees) 1915-52
Location: About three miles west of downtown Boston and one mile west of Fenway Park. First base (S), Commonwealth Avenue; right field (E), Harry Agganis Way (Gaffney Street); left field (N), Boston and Albany Railroad tracks/Charles River; third base (W), Babcock Street.
Remnants: Boston University bought Braves Field, converted it to a football field and changed its name to Nickerson Field. The old right-field pavilion is still part of the stadium. The first base ticket office and the concrete outer wall in right and center field are still there. A plaque was placed on the site in 1988 (at the Gaffney Street entrance) that has information about the ballpark and the Braves.
Chicago, Illinois
West Side Grounds:
Home of: Chicago Cubs (aka Colts, Orphans) 1894-1915
Location: About two miles west of downtown Chicago. Left field (E), South Wood Street; third base (N), West Polk Street; first base (W), South Lincoln (Wolcott) Avenue; right field (S), West Taylor Street.
Remnants: There’s a hospital there now, with nothing to show that there used to be a ballpark there.
South Side Park II
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1901-10
Location: In the south side of Chicago. Left field (N), old cricket grounds and 37th Street; third base (W), South Princeton Avenue; first base (S), West 39th Street (West Pershing Road); right field (E), South Wentworth Avenue.
Remnants: The site is only a couple of blocks away from the new White Sox park. It’s basically an open field with some parking for White Sox games now. There’s nothing there to show that there used to be a ballpark.
Comiskey Park:
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1910-90
Demolished: 1991
Location: Left field (N), West 34th; third base (W), Portland Avenue, later called South Shield’s Avenue; first base (S), 324 West 35th Street; right field (E), South Wentworth Avenue, later Dan Ryan Expressway/I-94.
Remnants: Old Comiskey was right next to where New Comiskey was built. The site is now a parking lot. What’s left on the parking lot is a plaque commemorating the location of home plate and an outline of Old Comiskey’s base paths.
Wrigley Field (also called Weeghman Park, Cubs Park):
Home of: Chicago Cubs 1916-present
New Comiskey Park (also called US Cellular Field)
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1991-present
Cincinnati, Ohio
Palace of the Fans
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1902-11
Location: Left field (N), York Street; third base (W), McLean Avenue; first base (S), Findlay Street; right field (E) and center field (NE), Western Avenue.
Remnants: Crosley Field was built on this site.
Crosley Field (also called Redland Field)
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1912-70
Demolished 1972
Location: At the corner of Western Avenue and Findlay Street, less than a half mile north of Union Terminal (now the Cincinnati Museum). Left field (N), York Street; third base (W), Crosley Field Way and the C&O Railroad tracks; first base (S), Findlay Street; center field and right field (E), Western Avenue.
Remnants: After Crosley Field was demolished, Dalton Street was extended through the site of the former ballpark. There’s a business park there now. There’s a plaque near the corner of Findlay and Western (placed there in 1998) commemorating Crosley Field. There’s a baseball field in Blue Ash, Ohio (a town northeast of Cincinnati) with a replica of Crosley Field, including the scoreboard and outfield wall. The street address is 11540 Grooms Road. We went to the replica in Blue Ash and it was really cool. It has the same dimensions as Crosley Field. The scoreboard still has the scores and lineups from the last game at Crosley Field. The outfield slopes upwards on a hill as you get near the wall, just like in old Crosley Field. It’s a great place to run around and pretend you’re playing a game.
Riverfront Stadium (also called Cinergy Field)
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1970-2002
Demolished 2002
Location: Left field (NE), Pete Rose Way, Broadway and Firstar Center (Riverfront Coliseum); third base (NW), Pete Rose Way on September 10, 1985; first base (SW), Roebling Suspension Bridge and the Ohio River; right field (SE), Mehring Way, railroad tracks, and the Ohio River.
Remnants: When we were last there (2005), they hadn’t done anything to mark the site. It’s right next door to the new ballpark.
Great American Ballpark
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 2003-present
Cleveland, Ohio
League Park (also called Dunn Field):
Home of: Cleveland Spiders 1891-99, Cleveland Indians (also called Blues, Bronchos, Naps) 1901-46
Demolished: 1951
Location: Intersection of East 66th Street and Lexington Avenue 3 miles east of City Hall. 1st base (W) E 66th St.; 3rd base (N) Linwood Ave.; left field (E) E 70th St.; right Field (S) Lexington Ave.
Remnants: The site of the ballpark is now mostly a big empty field but part of the wall is still standing and the two-story ticket office is still standing. It looks like the ticket office was turned into a recreation center at some point but it looks abandoned now, with lots of broken windows. The part of the wall that’s still standing is crumbling. An historical marker providing information about the ballpark is next to the old ticket office. It’s neat to see this park because parts of it are still there but it’s in a really bad neighborhood and you should only go there when it’s light out.
Cleveland Municipal Stadium (also called Lakefront Stadium and Cleveland Stadium)
Home of: Cleveland Indians 1932-93
Demolished: 11/96
Location: On the shore of Lake Erie between the lake and downtown Cleveland. 1st base (S) W. 3rd and Cleveland Memorial Shoreway; 3rd base (W) Erieside Ave., Lake Erie and W. 3rd; left field (N) Erieside Ave. and Lake Erie; right field (E) Cleveland Memorial Shoreway.
Remnants: The new Browns stadium is built on this site. There’s nothing there to show that the old ballpark used to be there.
Jacobs Field
Home of: Cleveland Indians 1994-present
Denver, Colorado
Mile High Stadium
Home of: Colorado Rockies 1993-94
Demolished
Location: Main entrance is on Eliot Street. Left field (E), Clay St.; 3rd base (N), 20th Ave.; 1st base (W), Eliot Street; Right field (S), 17th Ave.
Remnants: The new Broncos stadium was built near old Mile High Stadium. The old Mile High Stadium site now has grass, trees, and parking lots.
Coors Field
Home of: Colorado Rockies 1995-present
Detroit, Michigan
Bennett Park:
Home of: Detroit Tigers 1901-11
Location: Left field (W), National (Cochrane) Avenue; third base (S), Michigan Avenue; first base (E), Trumbull Avenue; right field (N), Cherry Street, in the Corktown neighborhood of downtown Detroit.
Remnants: Tiger Stadium was built on this site in 1912.
Tiger Stadium (aka Navin Field, Briggs Stadium):
Home of: Detroit Tigers 1912-99
Location: 2121 Trumbull Avenue, in the Corktown neighborhood of downtown Detroit. Left field (NW), Cherry Street, later Kaline Drive, and Interstate 75; third base (SW), National Avenue, later Cochrane Avenue; first base (SE), Michigan Avenue; right field (NE), Trumbull Avenue.
Remnants: The ballpark is still standing but is crumbling and is not being used.
Comerica Park
Home of: Detroit Tigers 2000-present
Houston, Texas
Colt Stadium
Home of: Houston Colt .45’s (later Astros) 1962-64
Location: In what is now the north parking lot of the Astrodome. Left field (N), Old Spanish Trail; third base (W), Kirby Drive; first base (S), South Loop Freeway/Interstate 610; right field (E), Fannin Street.
Remnants: Dismantled in the 1970s and moved to Gomez Palacio in Mexico where it became home to a Mexican League baseball team. It was in what’s now the north parking lot of the Astrodome.
Astrodome
Home of: Houston Astros 1965-99
Location: 8400 Kirby Drive. Center field (E), Fannin Street; third base (N), Old Spanish Trail; home plate (W), Kirby Drive; first base (S), South Loop Freeway/Interstate 610.
Remnants: Still standing
Minute Maid Park (also called Enron Field)
Home of: Houston Astros 2000-present
Kansas City, Missouri
Municipal Stadium
Home of: Kansas City A’s 1955-67, Kansas City Royals 1969-72
Demolished 1976
Location: One and a half miles southeast of downtown Kansas City at the intersection of 22nd street and Brooklyn Avenue. Left field (N) 21st Street; third base (E) Euclid Avenue; first base (S), 22nd Street; right field (E), Brooklyn Avenue.
Remnants: The site is now a big open field. There’s a plaque at the corner of the lot providing a history of the stadium.
Kauffman Stadium (also called Royals Stadium)
Home of: Kansas City Royals 1973-present
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles Coliseum:
Home of: LA Dodgers 1958-61
Location: Location: About 3 miles southwest of downtown Los Angeles and adjacent to the Univesity of Southern California campus. Bound by Menlo Avenue (W), West 39th Street and North Coliseum Drive (N), South Park Drive and S. Coliseum Drive (S), South Figueroa Street and I-110 (E).
Remnants: Still standing
Wrigley Field:
Home of: Los Angeles Angels 1961
Demolished: 1966
Location: In south-central Los Angeles at the intersection of 42nd Place and Avalon Boulevard. First base (S), 42nd Place; right field (E), Avalon Boulevard; left field (N), 41st Place; third base (W), San Pedro Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but, according to ballparks.com, there’s now a public park and recreation center, a community mental health center, and a senior citizens' center on the site.
Dodger Stadium (also called Chavez Ravine):
Home of: LA Dodgers 1962-present, LA Angels 1962-65
Miami, Florida
Dolphin Stadium (also called Joe Robbie Stadium, Pro Player Stadium)
Home of: Florida Marlins 1993-present
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Lloyd Street Grounds
Home of: Milwaukee Brewers (later St. Louis Browns/Baltimore Orioles) 1901
Location: About one mile northwest of downtown Milwaukee in the eastern part of a block bound by West North Street on the north, North 16th Street on the east, North 18th Street on the west and West Lloyd Street on the south. The field faced due north, so Lloyd Street ran directly behind home plate and the grandstand.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but I don’t think there’s anything to see there.
Milwaukee County Stadium
Home of: Milwaukee Braves 1953-65, Milwaukee Brewers 1970-2000
Demolished: 2001
Location: 201 South 46th Street. Left field (E), Menomonee River and South 44th Street, later US-41 Stadium Freeway; third base (N), Story Parkway and Interstate 94; first base (W), General Mitchell Boulevard; right field (S), West National Avenue and the National Soldiers Home.
Remnants: When we were last there (in 2001), there was nothing showing where the park used to be. But I’ve read that this is now a parking lot for the new Brewers’ park (it’s right next door to it) and there’s something in the parking lot showing where home plate used to be.
Miller Park
Home of: Milwaukee Brewers 2001-present
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Metropolitan Stadium
Home of: Minnesota Twins 1961-81
Demolished: 1985
Location: In Bloomington, a suburb fifteen miles south of downtown Minneapolis, near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. 1st base (W) Cedar Avenue South; right field (E) East 83rd Street; Left field (S) 24th Avenue South; 3rd base (N) 83rd Street (renamed to Killebrew Drive).
Remnants: The Mall of America is on the site. A plaque at the location of home plate is located in Camp Snoopy in the mall. Also, a chair from the stadium is attached to a wall near Camp Snoopy at the approximate location of the longest home run ever hit at the ballpark (by Harmon Killebrew).
Metrodome
Home of: Minnesota Twins 1982-present
Montreal, Quebec
Jarry Park
Home of: Montreal Expos 1969-76
Location: About 7 kilometers (4.2 miles) from downtown Montreal. First base, Rue Faillon; right field, Boulevard St. Laurent and public swimming pool; left field, Rue Jarry; third base, Canadian Pacific Railroad tracks.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but ballparks.com says that it’s currently a tennis stadium.
Olympic Stadium
Home of: Montreal Expos 1977-2004
Remnants: Still standing
New York, New York
Polo Grounds III:
Home of: New York Giants 1891-1911
Burned down
Location: Northern half of Coogan’s hollow between 157th and 159th streets.
Remnants: There’s nothing to see there and it’s not in a very good area of town.
Washington Park III
Home of: Brooklyn Superbas (later Dodgers) 1898-1912
Location: Left field (NW), 3rd Avenue; third base (SW), 3rd Street; first base (SE), 4th Avenue; right field (NW), 1st Street.
Remnants: Part of the clubhouse wall is still there. It’s now the 3rd Avenue wall to the Con Edison yard at 222 1st Street in Brooklyn. It’s neat to see and not too far away from a subway stop.
Hilltop Park:
Home of: New York Highlanders (later Yankees) 1903-12
Demolished: 1914
Location: In the Washington Heights section of Manhattan, on the west side of Broadway. Left field (N), 168th Street; 3rd base (W), Fort Washington Avenue; 1st base (S), 165th Street; right field (E), Broadway.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but ballparks.com says that Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center is now on the site.
Polo Grounds IV:
Home of: New York Giants 1911-57, New York Yankees 1913-22, New York Mets 1962-63
Demolished: 1964
Location: Center field (SE), Eighth Avenue, then IRT elevated tracks, Harlem River, and Harlem River Drive; third base (NE), West 159th Street and IRT Rail Yards; home plate (NW), Bridge Park, then Harlem River Speedway, Coogan’s Bluff, and Croton Aqueduct; first base (SW), West 157th Street trace; same site as Polo Grounds (III); in the northern half of Coogan’s Hollow, 115 feet below Coogan’s Bluff.
Remnants: The Polo Grounds Towers (four 30-story apartment buildings) are now where the field used to be. There’s a sign in front of the apartments saying that Willie Mays used to play there.
Ebbets Field:
Home of: Brooklyn Dodgers (also called Robins) 1913-57
Demolished: 1960
Location: 55 Sullivan Place, in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn (about three miles south by southeast down Flatbush Avenue from the Manhattan Bridge). Left field (N), Montgomery Street; third base (W), Franklin Avenue, later Cedar Place, later McKeever Place; first base (S), Sullivan Place; right field (E), Bedford Avenue.
Remnants: Ebbets Field Apartments (a housing project) now occupies the site. A plaque of home plate is located on the former site of home plate. But this is a very bad part of town and it’s not very safe to go in there.
Yankee Stadium:
Home of: New York Yankees 1923-present, except 1974-75
Shea Stadium:
Home of: New York Mets 1964-present, New York Yankees 1974-75
Oakland, California
Oakland-Alameda Country Stadium (also called Network Associates Coliseum, UMAX Stadium)
Home of: Oakland A’s 1968-present
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Baker Bowl II (also called Huntington Street Baseball Grounds, National League Park, Philadelphia Park)
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 1895-1938
Demolished: 1950
Location: Left field (N), West Lehigh Avenue; third base (W), North 15th Street; first base (S), West Huntingdon Street; right field (E), North Broad Street; Philadelphia and Reading Railroad tunnel beneath outfield.
Remnants: An historical marker, containing information about the Baker Bowl, is at the former location of the ballpark.
Columbia Park
Home of: Philadelphia A’s 1901-08
Location: In the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia on the 2900 block of Columbia Avenue. Left field (N by NE), Columbia Avenue; 3rd base (W by NW), 30th Street; 1st base (S by SW), Oxford Street; right field (E by SE), 29th Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but I don’t know of anything to see there.
Shibe Park (also called Connie Mack Stadium)
Home of: Philadelphia A’s 1909-54, Philadelphia Phillies 1938-70
Demolished: 1976
Location: Left field (N), West Somerset Street; third base (W), North 21st Street; first base (S), West Lehigh Avenue; right field (E), North 20th Street.
Remnants: It’s now the site of the Deliverance Evangelistic Church. An historical marker, containing information about Shibe Park, is at the former location of the ballpark.
Veterans Stadium
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 1971-2003
Demolished: 2004
Location: Left field (N by NE), Packer Street and Interstate 76; third base (W by NW), Broad Street; first base (S by SW), Pattison Avenue, First Union Spectrum and Center; right field (E by SE), Tenth Street.
Remnants: When we were last there in 2004, it was being built into a parking lot for the new stadium (which is right next door). We were told that the parking lot was supposed to have markings for the former field.
Citizens Bank Park
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 2004-present
Phoenix, Arizona
Bank One Ballpark
Home of: Arizona Diamondbacks 1998-present
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Exposition Park (III)
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1891-1909
Location: On the north shore of the Allegheny River across from downtown Pittsburgh, close to the current location of Three Rivers Stadium. Left field (S), B & O R.R. tracks and the Allegheny River; 3rd base (E), School (Scotland) Street; 1st base (N), South Avenue; right field (W), Grant (Galveston) Street.
Remnants: A plaque along the riverfront marks the site of the ballpark and provides historical information. The locations of home plate, the bases and the pitcher’s rubber are painted into a parking lot in between PNC Park and Heinz Field. The markings are fading and you have to look carefully to find them.
Forbes Field
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1909-70
Demolished 1971
Location: Two miles east of downtown Pittsburgh and just northwest of Schenley Park in the southern part of the University of Pittsburgh campus. Left field (NE), Schenley Drive (Bigelow Boulevard, Forbes Field Avenue, Pennant Place); third base (NW), Sennott Street (now gone), then Forbes Avenue; first base (SW) Boquet Street; right field (SE), none in the immediate vicinity, but Joncaire Street was the closest street in that direction.
Remnants: Posvar Hall is on the site of right field, and the University of Pittsburgh’s Forbes Quadrangle is on the site of the former infield. The center-field and right-center brick wall still stands, including the flagpole that was in play in the field. A red-brick line in the sidewalk traces the rest of the outfield wall. A plaque marks the spot of Bill Mazeroski’s home run from the 1960 World Series. If you go into the Forbes Quadrangle building, you can see home plate under glass in the floor. A plaque was placed near the wall providing historical information in 2006. This is my favorite former ballpark site because so much of it is left standing.
Three Rivers Stadium
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1970-2000
Demolished 2001
Location: 600 Stadium Circle. Left field (E), Interstate 279 Fort Duquesne Bridge approach ramp; third base (N), Reedsdale Street; first base (W), Allegheny Avenue, Ohio River, and the original point where the Monongahela River joins the Allegheny River to form the Ohio River; right field (S), North Shore Avenue, Roberto Clemente Memorial Park, Allegheny River; Stadium Circle encircles the park.
Remnants: None that we could find the last time we were there (in 2007) except for a large pole that marked one of the old entrances. The site is between where the current Pirates and Steelers parks are.
PNC Park
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 2001-present
San Diego, California
Jack Murphy Stadium (also called Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego Stadium)
Home of: San Diego Padres 1969-2003
Location: Left field (N by NE), 9449 Friars Road; third base (W by NW), Stadium Way and a quarry; first base (S by SW), San Diego River, Camino del Rio North, and Interstate 8; right field (E by SE), Interstate 15.
Remnants: Still standing
Petco Park
Home of: San Diego Padres 2004-present
San Francisco, California
Seals Stadium
Home of: San Francisco Giants 1958-59
Location: At the corner of 16th & Bryant Streets. Right field (S), 16th Street; first base (W), Bryant; third base (N), Alameda Street; left field (E), Potrero Avenue.
Remnants: There’s a strip center with a Safeway store there now. There’s nothing to mark the fact that a ballpark used to be there.
Candlestick Park (also called 3Com Park)
Home of: San Francisco Giants 1960-99
Location: In the southeast corner of San Francisco at Candlestick point. Left field (NW), Giants Drive; third base (SW), Jamestown Avenue and Bay View Hill; first base (SE), Jamestown Avenue, Candlestick Point, and San Francisco; right field (NE), Hunters Point Expressway and San Francisco Bay.
Remnants: Still standing
Pacific Bell Park
Home of: San Francisco Giants 2000-present
Seattle, Washington
Sicks’ Stadium
Home of: Seattle Pilots (later Milwaukee Brewers) 1969
Demolished 1979
Location: 1st base (W), 2700 Rainier Avenue South; right field (S), South McClellan Street; left field (E), Empire Way South (now Martin Luther King Jr. Way South); 3rd base (N), Bayview Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been there but ballparks.com says that the Sicks' Stadium site is now home to an Eagle Hardware and Garden store. There’s a glass display case inside the store that shows some memorabilia from the Pilots.
Kingdome
Home of: Seattle Mariners 1977-99
Demolished 2000
Location: Left field (N), 201 South King Street; third base (W), 589 Occidental Avenue South; first base (S), South Royal Brougham Way; right field (E), Fourth Avenue South and Burlington Northern Railroad tracks.
Remnants: The new Seahawks stadium is on the site.
Safeco Field
Home of: Seattle Mariners 1999-present
St. Louis, Missouri
Robison Field
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals (also called Brown Stockings, Perfectos) 1893-1920
Location: Left field (SE), Prairie Avenue; third base (NE), Natural Bridge Avenue and Fairground Park; first base (NW), Vandeventer Avenue; right field (SW), Lexington Avenue.
Remnants: A high school is on the site of the ballpark. A plaque on the school grounds provides historical information about the ballpark. The plaque was placed there in June 2006.
Sportsman’s Park (also called Busch Stadium)
Home of: St. Louis Browns 1902-53, St. Louis Cardinals 1920-66
Demolished 1966
Remnants: The Herbert Hoover Boys’ Club now stands on the site of the stadium. A sign commemorating it as the site of the ballpark is painted on the building, along with historical information about the ballpark.
Busch Stadium
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals 1966-2005
Location: Left field (E), Broadway, Interstate 70, Gateway Arch, and Mississippi River; third base (N), Walnut Street; first base (W), Seventh Street and 300 Stadium Plaza; right field (S), Spruce Street; Stadium Plaza surrounds the park.
Remnants: When we were there in 2006, the site (which is right next door to the new stadium) was still a construction site.
Busch Stadium II
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals 2006-present
Tampa, Florida
Tropicana Field
Home of: Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1998-present
Toronto, Ontario
Exhibition Stadium:
Home of: Toronto Blue Jays 1977-89
Demolished: 1999
Location: Near Lake Ontario about a mile west of downtown Toronto between Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard West.
Remnants: None that we know of. When my dad was last there, the stadium was still standing.
Sky Dome:
Home of: Toronto Blue Jays 1989-present
Washington DC
American League Park I:
Home of: Washington Senators 1901-1903
Location: At the corner of Florida Avenue NE and Trinidad Avenue NE. Left field (NE), what would become Neal Street NE; third base (NW), Trinidad; first base (SW), Florida Avenue NE; right field (SE), Bladensburg Road.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but aren’t aware of anything to see there.
National Park (also called American League Park II)
Home of: Washington Senators 1904-10
We couldn’t find location information on this ballpark.
Griffith Stadium (also called American League Park, League Park, National Park, Clark Griffith Park, Beyer’s Seventh Street Park):
Home of: Washington Senators 1911-61
Demolished: 1965
Location: Left field (E), Larch (later Fifth) Street NW; third base (N), Howard University, then Pomeroy (later W) Street NW; first base (W), J. Frank Kelley Lumber and Mill Works, then Georgia Avenue (also called Seventh Street) NW; right field (S), Spruce Street (later U) Street NW.
Remnants: There’s nothing currently there to mark the location of this ballpark. The Clark Griffith Memorial that used to be outside the stadium is now outside of RFK Stadium.
RFK Stadium (also called DC Stadium):
Home of: Washington Senators 1962-71, Washington Nationals 2005-2007
Location: Corner of Independence Avenue and 22nd Street in Southeast Washington D.C.
Remnants: Still standing.
Results of last week’s poll:
Out of my top player the Rangers should consider at each position, who do you think the Rangers should pursue?
Torii Hunter – 75%
Ron Mahay – 13%
Kyle Lohse – 8%
Sean Casey – 4%
All others – 0%
I have added a baseball trivia tab to the left. This week’s trivia is from Trivia from http://www.usefultrivia.com/sports_trivia/baseball_trivia_index.html.
Come back next week for the first part of an analysis of all the trades Tom Grieve made as Rangers GM.
This information is based on our personal experiences. If you know of any changes to what we saw or of anything we missed, please leave a comment.
We used http://www.ballparks.com/ to get the locations of the old ballparks. The ‘Location’ information for each ballpark is copied from there. That’s a great site to get lots of information on all ballparks past, present, and future.
It’s really fun to go see where the old ballparks used to be, especially the ones that still have pieces of the old ballpark left, so I recommend this for anyone going to an out-of-town game.
Arlington, Texas
Arlington Stadium:
Home of: Texas Rangers 1972-93
Demolished: 1994
Location: Adjacent to Six Flags over Texas on the west side of the amusement park in the center of a parking lot bound by Stadium Drive E (E), E Randol Mill Road (S), Pennant Drive (W) and Copeland Road and I-30 (N).
Remnants: Site is now part of the parking lot for the Ballpark in Arlington. There’s nothing there marking where the old ballpark used to be. The Rangers should mark the old stadium’s basepaths or something like that.
The Ballpark in Arlington (also called Rangers Ballpark in Arlington and Ameriquest Field)
Home of: Texas Rangers 1994-present
Anaheim, California
Angel Stadium (formerly Anaheim Stadium and Edison International Field)
Home of: California/Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels 1966-present
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta Fulton County Stadium
Home of: Atlanta Braves 1966-1996
Demolished 1997
Location: Left field (N by NE), Fulton Street and Interstate 20; third base (W by NW), Washington Street, Interstate 75/85, and Pulliam Street; first base (S by SW), Georgia Avenue; right field (E by SE), Capitol Avenue.
Remnants: The site of Fulton County Stadium is now a parking lot for Turner Field. Outlines of home plate, the base paths, the pitchers mound, the bases, and the outfield wall are all marked. There’s a sign commemorating the location of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run. This is a great example of what teams can do and the sort of thing the Rangers should do.
Turner Field
Home of: Atlanta Braves 1997-present
Baltimore, Maryland
Oriole Park
Home of: Baltimore Orioles (later New York Highlanders/Yankees) 1901-02
Location: The ballpark faced a few degrees west of due south. East 29th Street ran directly behind home plate and the grandstand on the north side of the field. York (Greenmount) Avenue ran from behind the grandstand beyond third base on the east side of the park. Barclay Street ran from behind the grandstand beyond first base on the west side of the park. The outfield was enclosed by Barclay Street in right field, York (Greenmount) Avenue in a small part of left field and by what was to become 28th Street in left and center fields.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but I don’t think there’s anything there.
Memorial Stadium
Home of: Baltimore Orioles 1954-91
Demolished 2001
Location: Center field (N), East 36th Street; third base (W), Ellerslie Avenue; home plate (S), 1000 East 33rd Street; section of 33rd Street near ballpark is known as Babe Ruth Plaza; first base (E), Ednor Road.
Remnants: We’re not aware of anything at the old site marking that the old ballpark was there, but we haven’t been back to the site since before they tore the ballpark down. Part of the words from the old Memorial Wall can be seen outside their new ballpark.
Oriole Park at Camden Yards
Home of: Baltimore Orioles 1992-present
Boston, Massachessetts
South End Grounds (also called Walpole Street Grounds, Union Baseball Grounds, Boston Baseball Grounds)
South End Grounds I: 1871-1887, demolished 1887
South End Grounds II: 1888-1894, burned down
South End Grounds III: 1894-1914, demolished
Home of: Boston Braves (also called Red Stockings, Red Caps, Doves, Rustlers, Beaneaters) 1871-1914
Location: Columbus and Walpole. Walpole ran behind home plate, Columbus along the 1st base side of the field. The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad tracks ran along the 3rd base side of the field. Behind the outfield was a railroad roundhouse, and behind that was Gainsborough.
Remnants: The site is now occupied by the Ruggles Station on the Orange Line. There’s nothing there to indicate that there used to be a ballpark there.
Huntington Avenue Grounds
Home of: Boston Red Sox (also called Pilgrims, Americans, Puritans, Plymouth Rocks, Somersets) 1901-11
Location: Left field (NW), Huntington Avenue; third base (SW), Bryant (Rogers) Street, now Forsyth Street; first base (SE) New Gravelly Pt. and New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad tracks; right field (NE), New Gravelly Pt.
Remnants: The site is now occupied by Northeastern University. There’s a plaque commemorating the location of where the left field foul line used to be on the outside of a building built on that location. It was put there in 1956. In 1993, a statue of Cy Young was placed where the pitchers mound used to be and a home plate plaque was placed where home plate used to be. The statue and home plate plaque are at a really nice location, being inside a little grassy area with park benches on the campus. This is one of the best former ballpark sites because of the statue and the plaques.
Fenway Park
Home of: Boston Red Sox 1912-present
Braves Field
Home of: Boston Braves (also called Bees) 1915-52
Location: About three miles west of downtown Boston and one mile west of Fenway Park. First base (S), Commonwealth Avenue; right field (E), Harry Agganis Way (Gaffney Street); left field (N), Boston and Albany Railroad tracks/Charles River; third base (W), Babcock Street.
Remnants: Boston University bought Braves Field, converted it to a football field and changed its name to Nickerson Field. The old right-field pavilion is still part of the stadium. The first base ticket office and the concrete outer wall in right and center field are still there. A plaque was placed on the site in 1988 (at the Gaffney Street entrance) that has information about the ballpark and the Braves.
Chicago, Illinois
West Side Grounds:
Home of: Chicago Cubs (aka Colts, Orphans) 1894-1915
Location: About two miles west of downtown Chicago. Left field (E), South Wood Street; third base (N), West Polk Street; first base (W), South Lincoln (Wolcott) Avenue; right field (S), West Taylor Street.
Remnants: There’s a hospital there now, with nothing to show that there used to be a ballpark there.
South Side Park II
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1901-10
Location: In the south side of Chicago. Left field (N), old cricket grounds and 37th Street; third base (W), South Princeton Avenue; first base (S), West 39th Street (West Pershing Road); right field (E), South Wentworth Avenue.
Remnants: The site is only a couple of blocks away from the new White Sox park. It’s basically an open field with some parking for White Sox games now. There’s nothing there to show that there used to be a ballpark.
Comiskey Park:
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1910-90
Demolished: 1991
Location: Left field (N), West 34th; third base (W), Portland Avenue, later called South Shield’s Avenue; first base (S), 324 West 35th Street; right field (E), South Wentworth Avenue, later Dan Ryan Expressway/I-94.
Remnants: Old Comiskey was right next to where New Comiskey was built. The site is now a parking lot. What’s left on the parking lot is a plaque commemorating the location of home plate and an outline of Old Comiskey’s base paths.
Wrigley Field (also called Weeghman Park, Cubs Park):
Home of: Chicago Cubs 1916-present
New Comiskey Park (also called US Cellular Field)
Home of: Chicago White Sox 1991-present
Cincinnati, Ohio
Palace of the Fans
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1902-11
Location: Left field (N), York Street; third base (W), McLean Avenue; first base (S), Findlay Street; right field (E) and center field (NE), Western Avenue.
Remnants: Crosley Field was built on this site.
Crosley Field (also called Redland Field)
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1912-70
Demolished 1972
Location: At the corner of Western Avenue and Findlay Street, less than a half mile north of Union Terminal (now the Cincinnati Museum). Left field (N), York Street; third base (W), Crosley Field Way and the C&O Railroad tracks; first base (S), Findlay Street; center field and right field (E), Western Avenue.
Remnants: After Crosley Field was demolished, Dalton Street was extended through the site of the former ballpark. There’s a business park there now. There’s a plaque near the corner of Findlay and Western (placed there in 1998) commemorating Crosley Field. There’s a baseball field in Blue Ash, Ohio (a town northeast of Cincinnati) with a replica of Crosley Field, including the scoreboard and outfield wall. The street address is 11540 Grooms Road. We went to the replica in Blue Ash and it was really cool. It has the same dimensions as Crosley Field. The scoreboard still has the scores and lineups from the last game at Crosley Field. The outfield slopes upwards on a hill as you get near the wall, just like in old Crosley Field. It’s a great place to run around and pretend you’re playing a game.
Riverfront Stadium (also called Cinergy Field)
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 1970-2002
Demolished 2002
Location: Left field (NE), Pete Rose Way, Broadway and Firstar Center (Riverfront Coliseum); third base (NW), Pete Rose Way on September 10, 1985; first base (SW), Roebling Suspension Bridge and the Ohio River; right field (SE), Mehring Way, railroad tracks, and the Ohio River.
Remnants: When we were last there (2005), they hadn’t done anything to mark the site. It’s right next door to the new ballpark.
Great American Ballpark
Home of: Cincinnati Reds 2003-present
Cleveland, Ohio
League Park (also called Dunn Field):
Home of: Cleveland Spiders 1891-99, Cleveland Indians (also called Blues, Bronchos, Naps) 1901-46
Demolished: 1951
Location: Intersection of East 66th Street and Lexington Avenue 3 miles east of City Hall. 1st base (W) E 66th St.; 3rd base (N) Linwood Ave.; left field (E) E 70th St.; right Field (S) Lexington Ave.
Remnants: The site of the ballpark is now mostly a big empty field but part of the wall is still standing and the two-story ticket office is still standing. It looks like the ticket office was turned into a recreation center at some point but it looks abandoned now, with lots of broken windows. The part of the wall that’s still standing is crumbling. An historical marker providing information about the ballpark is next to the old ticket office. It’s neat to see this park because parts of it are still there but it’s in a really bad neighborhood and you should only go there when it’s light out.
Cleveland Municipal Stadium (also called Lakefront Stadium and Cleveland Stadium)
Home of: Cleveland Indians 1932-93
Demolished: 11/96
Location: On the shore of Lake Erie between the lake and downtown Cleveland. 1st base (S) W. 3rd and Cleveland Memorial Shoreway; 3rd base (W) Erieside Ave., Lake Erie and W. 3rd; left field (N) Erieside Ave. and Lake Erie; right field (E) Cleveland Memorial Shoreway.
Remnants: The new Browns stadium is built on this site. There’s nothing there to show that the old ballpark used to be there.
Jacobs Field
Home of: Cleveland Indians 1994-present
Denver, Colorado
Mile High Stadium
Home of: Colorado Rockies 1993-94
Demolished
Location: Main entrance is on Eliot Street. Left field (E), Clay St.; 3rd base (N), 20th Ave.; 1st base (W), Eliot Street; Right field (S), 17th Ave.
Remnants: The new Broncos stadium was built near old Mile High Stadium. The old Mile High Stadium site now has grass, trees, and parking lots.
Coors Field
Home of: Colorado Rockies 1995-present
Detroit, Michigan
Bennett Park:
Home of: Detroit Tigers 1901-11
Location: Left field (W), National (Cochrane) Avenue; third base (S), Michigan Avenue; first base (E), Trumbull Avenue; right field (N), Cherry Street, in the Corktown neighborhood of downtown Detroit.
Remnants: Tiger Stadium was built on this site in 1912.
Tiger Stadium (aka Navin Field, Briggs Stadium):
Home of: Detroit Tigers 1912-99
Location: 2121 Trumbull Avenue, in the Corktown neighborhood of downtown Detroit. Left field (NW), Cherry Street, later Kaline Drive, and Interstate 75; third base (SW), National Avenue, later Cochrane Avenue; first base (SE), Michigan Avenue; right field (NE), Trumbull Avenue.
Remnants: The ballpark is still standing but is crumbling and is not being used.
Comerica Park
Home of: Detroit Tigers 2000-present
Houston, Texas
Colt Stadium
Home of: Houston Colt .45’s (later Astros) 1962-64
Location: In what is now the north parking lot of the Astrodome. Left field (N), Old Spanish Trail; third base (W), Kirby Drive; first base (S), South Loop Freeway/Interstate 610; right field (E), Fannin Street.
Remnants: Dismantled in the 1970s and moved to Gomez Palacio in Mexico where it became home to a Mexican League baseball team. It was in what’s now the north parking lot of the Astrodome.
Astrodome
Home of: Houston Astros 1965-99
Location: 8400 Kirby Drive. Center field (E), Fannin Street; third base (N), Old Spanish Trail; home plate (W), Kirby Drive; first base (S), South Loop Freeway/Interstate 610.
Remnants: Still standing
Minute Maid Park (also called Enron Field)
Home of: Houston Astros 2000-present
Kansas City, Missouri
Municipal Stadium
Home of: Kansas City A’s 1955-67, Kansas City Royals 1969-72
Demolished 1976
Location: One and a half miles southeast of downtown Kansas City at the intersection of 22nd street and Brooklyn Avenue. Left field (N) 21st Street; third base (E) Euclid Avenue; first base (S), 22nd Street; right field (E), Brooklyn Avenue.
Remnants: The site is now a big open field. There’s a plaque at the corner of the lot providing a history of the stadium.
Kauffman Stadium (also called Royals Stadium)
Home of: Kansas City Royals 1973-present
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles Coliseum:
Home of: LA Dodgers 1958-61
Location: Location: About 3 miles southwest of downtown Los Angeles and adjacent to the Univesity of Southern California campus. Bound by Menlo Avenue (W), West 39th Street and North Coliseum Drive (N), South Park Drive and S. Coliseum Drive (S), South Figueroa Street and I-110 (E).
Remnants: Still standing
Wrigley Field:
Home of: Los Angeles Angels 1961
Demolished: 1966
Location: In south-central Los Angeles at the intersection of 42nd Place and Avalon Boulevard. First base (S), 42nd Place; right field (E), Avalon Boulevard; left field (N), 41st Place; third base (W), San Pedro Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but, according to ballparks.com, there’s now a public park and recreation center, a community mental health center, and a senior citizens' center on the site.
Dodger Stadium (also called Chavez Ravine):
Home of: LA Dodgers 1962-present, LA Angels 1962-65
Miami, Florida
Dolphin Stadium (also called Joe Robbie Stadium, Pro Player Stadium)
Home of: Florida Marlins 1993-present
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Lloyd Street Grounds
Home of: Milwaukee Brewers (later St. Louis Browns/Baltimore Orioles) 1901
Location: About one mile northwest of downtown Milwaukee in the eastern part of a block bound by West North Street on the north, North 16th Street on the east, North 18th Street on the west and West Lloyd Street on the south. The field faced due north, so Lloyd Street ran directly behind home plate and the grandstand.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but I don’t think there’s anything to see there.
Milwaukee County Stadium
Home of: Milwaukee Braves 1953-65, Milwaukee Brewers 1970-2000
Demolished: 2001
Location: 201 South 46th Street. Left field (E), Menomonee River and South 44th Street, later US-41 Stadium Freeway; third base (N), Story Parkway and Interstate 94; first base (W), General Mitchell Boulevard; right field (S), West National Avenue and the National Soldiers Home.
Remnants: When we were last there (in 2001), there was nothing showing where the park used to be. But I’ve read that this is now a parking lot for the new Brewers’ park (it’s right next door to it) and there’s something in the parking lot showing where home plate used to be.
Miller Park
Home of: Milwaukee Brewers 2001-present
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Metropolitan Stadium
Home of: Minnesota Twins 1961-81
Demolished: 1985
Location: In Bloomington, a suburb fifteen miles south of downtown Minneapolis, near the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. 1st base (W) Cedar Avenue South; right field (E) East 83rd Street; Left field (S) 24th Avenue South; 3rd base (N) 83rd Street (renamed to Killebrew Drive).
Remnants: The Mall of America is on the site. A plaque at the location of home plate is located in Camp Snoopy in the mall. Also, a chair from the stadium is attached to a wall near Camp Snoopy at the approximate location of the longest home run ever hit at the ballpark (by Harmon Killebrew).
Metrodome
Home of: Minnesota Twins 1982-present
Montreal, Quebec
Jarry Park
Home of: Montreal Expos 1969-76
Location: About 7 kilometers (4.2 miles) from downtown Montreal. First base, Rue Faillon; right field, Boulevard St. Laurent and public swimming pool; left field, Rue Jarry; third base, Canadian Pacific Railroad tracks.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but ballparks.com says that it’s currently a tennis stadium.
Olympic Stadium
Home of: Montreal Expos 1977-2004
Remnants: Still standing
New York, New York
Polo Grounds III:
Home of: New York Giants 1891-1911
Burned down
Location: Northern half of Coogan’s hollow between 157th and 159th streets.
Remnants: There’s nothing to see there and it’s not in a very good area of town.
Washington Park III
Home of: Brooklyn Superbas (later Dodgers) 1898-1912
Location: Left field (NW), 3rd Avenue; third base (SW), 3rd Street; first base (SE), 4th Avenue; right field (NW), 1st Street.
Remnants: Part of the clubhouse wall is still there. It’s now the 3rd Avenue wall to the Con Edison yard at 222 1st Street in Brooklyn. It’s neat to see and not too far away from a subway stop.
Hilltop Park:
Home of: New York Highlanders (later Yankees) 1903-12
Demolished: 1914
Location: In the Washington Heights section of Manhattan, on the west side of Broadway. Left field (N), 168th Street; 3rd base (W), Fort Washington Avenue; 1st base (S), 165th Street; right field (E), Broadway.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this one but ballparks.com says that Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center is now on the site.
Polo Grounds IV:
Home of: New York Giants 1911-57, New York Yankees 1913-22, New York Mets 1962-63
Demolished: 1964
Location: Center field (SE), Eighth Avenue, then IRT elevated tracks, Harlem River, and Harlem River Drive; third base (NE), West 159th Street and IRT Rail Yards; home plate (NW), Bridge Park, then Harlem River Speedway, Coogan’s Bluff, and Croton Aqueduct; first base (SW), West 157th Street trace; same site as Polo Grounds (III); in the northern half of Coogan’s Hollow, 115 feet below Coogan’s Bluff.
Remnants: The Polo Grounds Towers (four 30-story apartment buildings) are now where the field used to be. There’s a sign in front of the apartments saying that Willie Mays used to play there.
Ebbets Field:
Home of: Brooklyn Dodgers (also called Robins) 1913-57
Demolished: 1960
Location: 55 Sullivan Place, in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn (about three miles south by southeast down Flatbush Avenue from the Manhattan Bridge). Left field (N), Montgomery Street; third base (W), Franklin Avenue, later Cedar Place, later McKeever Place; first base (S), Sullivan Place; right field (E), Bedford Avenue.
Remnants: Ebbets Field Apartments (a housing project) now occupies the site. A plaque of home plate is located on the former site of home plate. But this is a very bad part of town and it’s not very safe to go in there.
Yankee Stadium:
Home of: New York Yankees 1923-present, except 1974-75
Shea Stadium:
Home of: New York Mets 1964-present, New York Yankees 1974-75
Oakland, California
Oakland-Alameda Country Stadium (also called Network Associates Coliseum, UMAX Stadium)
Home of: Oakland A’s 1968-present
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Baker Bowl II (also called Huntington Street Baseball Grounds, National League Park, Philadelphia Park)
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 1895-1938
Demolished: 1950
Location: Left field (N), West Lehigh Avenue; third base (W), North 15th Street; first base (S), West Huntingdon Street; right field (E), North Broad Street; Philadelphia and Reading Railroad tunnel beneath outfield.
Remnants: An historical marker, containing information about the Baker Bowl, is at the former location of the ballpark.
Columbia Park
Home of: Philadelphia A’s 1901-08
Location: In the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia on the 2900 block of Columbia Avenue. Left field (N by NE), Columbia Avenue; 3rd base (W by NW), 30th Street; 1st base (S by SW), Oxford Street; right field (E by SE), 29th Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but I don’t know of anything to see there.
Shibe Park (also called Connie Mack Stadium)
Home of: Philadelphia A’s 1909-54, Philadelphia Phillies 1938-70
Demolished: 1976
Location: Left field (N), West Somerset Street; third base (W), North 21st Street; first base (S), West Lehigh Avenue; right field (E), North 20th Street.
Remnants: It’s now the site of the Deliverance Evangelistic Church. An historical marker, containing information about Shibe Park, is at the former location of the ballpark.
Veterans Stadium
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 1971-2003
Demolished: 2004
Location: Left field (N by NE), Packer Street and Interstate 76; third base (W by NW), Broad Street; first base (S by SW), Pattison Avenue, First Union Spectrum and Center; right field (E by SE), Tenth Street.
Remnants: When we were last there in 2004, it was being built into a parking lot for the new stadium (which is right next door). We were told that the parking lot was supposed to have markings for the former field.
Citizens Bank Park
Home of: Philadelphia Phillies 2004-present
Phoenix, Arizona
Bank One Ballpark
Home of: Arizona Diamondbacks 1998-present
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Exposition Park (III)
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1891-1909
Location: On the north shore of the Allegheny River across from downtown Pittsburgh, close to the current location of Three Rivers Stadium. Left field (S), B & O R.R. tracks and the Allegheny River; 3rd base (E), School (Scotland) Street; 1st base (N), South Avenue; right field (W), Grant (Galveston) Street.
Remnants: A plaque along the riverfront marks the site of the ballpark and provides historical information. The locations of home plate, the bases and the pitcher’s rubber are painted into a parking lot in between PNC Park and Heinz Field. The markings are fading and you have to look carefully to find them.
Forbes Field
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1909-70
Demolished 1971
Location: Two miles east of downtown Pittsburgh and just northwest of Schenley Park in the southern part of the University of Pittsburgh campus. Left field (NE), Schenley Drive (Bigelow Boulevard, Forbes Field Avenue, Pennant Place); third base (NW), Sennott Street (now gone), then Forbes Avenue; first base (SW) Boquet Street; right field (SE), none in the immediate vicinity, but Joncaire Street was the closest street in that direction.
Remnants: Posvar Hall is on the site of right field, and the University of Pittsburgh’s Forbes Quadrangle is on the site of the former infield. The center-field and right-center brick wall still stands, including the flagpole that was in play in the field. A red-brick line in the sidewalk traces the rest of the outfield wall. A plaque marks the spot of Bill Mazeroski’s home run from the 1960 World Series. If you go into the Forbes Quadrangle building, you can see home plate under glass in the floor. A plaque was placed near the wall providing historical information in 2006. This is my favorite former ballpark site because so much of it is left standing.
Three Rivers Stadium
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 1970-2000
Demolished 2001
Location: 600 Stadium Circle. Left field (E), Interstate 279 Fort Duquesne Bridge approach ramp; third base (N), Reedsdale Street; first base (W), Allegheny Avenue, Ohio River, and the original point where the Monongahela River joins the Allegheny River to form the Ohio River; right field (S), North Shore Avenue, Roberto Clemente Memorial Park, Allegheny River; Stadium Circle encircles the park.
Remnants: None that we could find the last time we were there (in 2007) except for a large pole that marked one of the old entrances. The site is between where the current Pirates and Steelers parks are.
PNC Park
Home of: Pittsburgh Pirates 2001-present
San Diego, California
Jack Murphy Stadium (also called Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego Stadium)
Home of: San Diego Padres 1969-2003
Location: Left field (N by NE), 9449 Friars Road; third base (W by NW), Stadium Way and a quarry; first base (S by SW), San Diego River, Camino del Rio North, and Interstate 8; right field (E by SE), Interstate 15.
Remnants: Still standing
Petco Park
Home of: San Diego Padres 2004-present
San Francisco, California
Seals Stadium
Home of: San Francisco Giants 1958-59
Location: At the corner of 16th & Bryant Streets. Right field (S), 16th Street; first base (W), Bryant; third base (N), Alameda Street; left field (E), Potrero Avenue.
Remnants: There’s a strip center with a Safeway store there now. There’s nothing to mark the fact that a ballpark used to be there.
Candlestick Park (also called 3Com Park)
Home of: San Francisco Giants 1960-99
Location: In the southeast corner of San Francisco at Candlestick point. Left field (NW), Giants Drive; third base (SW), Jamestown Avenue and Bay View Hill; first base (SE), Jamestown Avenue, Candlestick Point, and San Francisco; right field (NE), Hunters Point Expressway and San Francisco Bay.
Remnants: Still standing
Pacific Bell Park
Home of: San Francisco Giants 2000-present
Seattle, Washington
Sicks’ Stadium
Home of: Seattle Pilots (later Milwaukee Brewers) 1969
Demolished 1979
Location: 1st base (W), 2700 Rainier Avenue South; right field (S), South McClellan Street; left field (E), Empire Way South (now Martin Luther King Jr. Way South); 3rd base (N), Bayview Street.
Remnants: We haven’t been there but ballparks.com says that the Sicks' Stadium site is now home to an Eagle Hardware and Garden store. There’s a glass display case inside the store that shows some memorabilia from the Pilots.
Kingdome
Home of: Seattle Mariners 1977-99
Demolished 2000
Location: Left field (N), 201 South King Street; third base (W), 589 Occidental Avenue South; first base (S), South Royal Brougham Way; right field (E), Fourth Avenue South and Burlington Northern Railroad tracks.
Remnants: The new Seahawks stadium is on the site.
Safeco Field
Home of: Seattle Mariners 1999-present
St. Louis, Missouri
Robison Field
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals (also called Brown Stockings, Perfectos) 1893-1920
Location: Left field (SE), Prairie Avenue; third base (NE), Natural Bridge Avenue and Fairground Park; first base (NW), Vandeventer Avenue; right field (SW), Lexington Avenue.
Remnants: A high school is on the site of the ballpark. A plaque on the school grounds provides historical information about the ballpark. The plaque was placed there in June 2006.
Sportsman’s Park (also called Busch Stadium)
Home of: St. Louis Browns 1902-53, St. Louis Cardinals 1920-66
Demolished 1966
Remnants: The Herbert Hoover Boys’ Club now stands on the site of the stadium. A sign commemorating it as the site of the ballpark is painted on the building, along with historical information about the ballpark.
Busch Stadium
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals 1966-2005
Location: Left field (E), Broadway, Interstate 70, Gateway Arch, and Mississippi River; third base (N), Walnut Street; first base (W), Seventh Street and 300 Stadium Plaza; right field (S), Spruce Street; Stadium Plaza surrounds the park.
Remnants: When we were there in 2006, the site (which is right next door to the new stadium) was still a construction site.
Busch Stadium II
Home of: St. Louis Cardinals 2006-present
Tampa, Florida
Tropicana Field
Home of: Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1998-present
Toronto, Ontario
Exhibition Stadium:
Home of: Toronto Blue Jays 1977-89
Demolished: 1999
Location: Near Lake Ontario about a mile west of downtown Toronto between Gardiner Expressway and Lake Shore Boulevard West.
Remnants: None that we know of. When my dad was last there, the stadium was still standing.
Sky Dome:
Home of: Toronto Blue Jays 1989-present
Washington DC
American League Park I:
Home of: Washington Senators 1901-1903
Location: At the corner of Florida Avenue NE and Trinidad Avenue NE. Left field (NE), what would become Neal Street NE; third base (NW), Trinidad; first base (SW), Florida Avenue NE; right field (SE), Bladensburg Road.
Remnants: We haven’t been to this site but aren’t aware of anything to see there.
National Park (also called American League Park II)
Home of: Washington Senators 1904-10
We couldn’t find location information on this ballpark.
Griffith Stadium (also called American League Park, League Park, National Park, Clark Griffith Park, Beyer’s Seventh Street Park):
Home of: Washington Senators 1911-61
Demolished: 1965
Location: Left field (E), Larch (later Fifth) Street NW; third base (N), Howard University, then Pomeroy (later W) Street NW; first base (W), J. Frank Kelley Lumber and Mill Works, then Georgia Avenue (also called Seventh Street) NW; right field (S), Spruce Street (later U) Street NW.
Remnants: There’s nothing currently there to mark the location of this ballpark. The Clark Griffith Memorial that used to be outside the stadium is now outside of RFK Stadium.
RFK Stadium (also called DC Stadium):
Home of: Washington Senators 1962-71, Washington Nationals 2005-2007
Location: Corner of Independence Avenue and 22nd Street in Southeast Washington D.C.
Remnants: Still standing.
Results of last week’s poll:
Out of my top player the Rangers should consider at each position, who do you think the Rangers should pursue?
Torii Hunter – 75%
Ron Mahay – 13%
Kyle Lohse – 8%
Sean Casey – 4%
All others – 0%
I have added a baseball trivia tab to the left. This week’s trivia is from Trivia from http://www.usefultrivia.com/sports_trivia/baseball_trivia_index.html.
Come back next week for the first part of an analysis of all the trades Tom Grieve made as Rangers GM.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Free Agent Analysis
This week, I’ll list the best free agents at each position and highlight the ones that are the best fit for the Rangers.
1st base:
1. Sean Casey: Sean had a down year last year but we need a first baseman and he probably wouldn’t cost much after last year. Sean played for the Tigers last year after playing with the Reds. He is 33 and his career batting average is .301.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $2.6 million deal with Rangers.
2. Mike Lamb
3. Tony Clark
4. Shea Hillenbrand
5. Doug Mientkiewicz
6. Julio Franco
7. Mark Sweeney
2nd base:
1. Luis Castillo
2. Mark Loretta
3. Kaz Matsui
4. Tadahito Iguchi
5. Miguel Cairo: The Rangers have their starting second baseman in Ian Kinsler. Miguel Cairo would be more than happy to sign as a back-up, because he will probably get a minor league deal. Miguel played for the Cardinals last year and struggled, batting .253 with no homers and only 15 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs minor-league deal with the Angels
6. Marcus Giles
3rd base:
1. A-ROD
2. Mike Lowell
3. Tony Batista
4. Aaron Boone
5. Russell Branyan
6. Geoff Blum: There’s nobody on this list that we can get and promise a starting role to, since we can’t get A-ROD or Lowell. Blum would be a good guy to have as a back-up third baseman. Last year, he hit .252 with 5 homers and 33 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $950 K deal with the Astros
7. Mark Bellhorn
8. Jeff Cirillo
9. Tony Graffanino
10. Pedro Feliz
11. Cesar Isturis
Short Stop:
1. David Eckstein
2. Tomohiro Nioka
3. Royce Clayton: We definitely don’t need a short-stop, but he would be good as a possible second base/short-stop back-up. He also would probably accept a deal that would have him fighting to make the team in Spring Training. Last year, with the Red Sox, he hit .246 with 1 home run and 12 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $750 K deal with the Royals
4. Ramon Martinez
5. John McDonald
6. Omar Visquel
Catcher: The Rangers are deep at this position so none of these free agents are a fit.
1. Jorge Posada
2. Pudge
3. Paul Lo Duca
4. Michael Barrett
5. Jason Kendall
6. Brad Ausmus
7. Mike Piazza
8. Rod Barajas
9. Doug Mirabelli
10. Yorvit Torrealba
11. Mike Lieberthal
12. Jason Larue
13. Sandy Alomar Jr.
Outfield:
1. Torii Hunter: Torii can play defense really well as he is a 7-time gold glove winner. He is also a 2-time all-star. Last year, he hit .287 with 28 homers and 107 RBI’s. He lives in Dallas, Texas.
Prediction: Signs 6-year, $96M deal with the Rangers
2. Andruw Jones
3. Aaron Rowand
4. Kosuke Fukudome
5. Kenny Lofton
6. Barry Bonds
7. Jose Guillen
8. Corey Patterson
9. Milton Bradley
10. Shawn Green
11. Brad Wilkerson
12. Luis Gonzalez
13. Sammy Sosa
14. Shannon Stewart
15. Mike Cameron
16. Geoff Jenkins
17. Cliff Floyd
18. Trot Nixon
19. Jose Cruz Jr.
20. Rob Mackowiak
21. Ryan Klesko
22. Eric Hinske
Starting Pitcher:
1. Kazumi Saito
2. Carlos Silva
3. Freddy Garcia
4. Kenshin Kawamaki
5. Kyle Lohse: Last year Kyle Lohse struggled, going 9-12 with a 4.62 ERA, but he almost pitched 200 innings. But his numbers have been improving and he has a great fastball. He is only 29 years old. For the Rangers he would be the #2 or #3 starting pitcher.
Prediction: Signs 5-year, $46 million contract with the Rangers
6. Livan Hernandez
7. Jason Jennings
8. Tom Glavine
9. Shawn Chacon
10. Jeff Weaver
11. Kenny Rogers
12. Randy Wolf
13. Jeremy Affeldt
14. Tony Armas
15. Bartolo Colon
16. Casey Fossum
17. Matt Clement
18. Shawn Estes
19. Mark Redman
Relief Pitchers:
1. Scott Linebrink
2. Octavio Dotel
3. Ron Mahay: Ron is a very good left-handed relief pitcher. Last year he went 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA. Even though he’s 36, he’s showing no signs of wearing down.
Prediction: Signs 2 year $5 million deal with the Angels
4. Kerry Wood
5. Antonio Alfonseca
6. Scott Eyre
Results of last week’s poll:
Who is the number one priority for the Rangers to re-sign?
None – 47%
Jamey Wright – 29%
Brad Wilkerson – 9%
Sammy Sosa – 9%
Jerry Hairston – 6%
Come back next week for a special on former ballparks.
1st base:
1. Sean Casey: Sean had a down year last year but we need a first baseman and he probably wouldn’t cost much after last year. Sean played for the Tigers last year after playing with the Reds. He is 33 and his career batting average is .301.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $2.6 million deal with Rangers.
2. Mike Lamb
3. Tony Clark
4. Shea Hillenbrand
5. Doug Mientkiewicz
6. Julio Franco
7. Mark Sweeney
2nd base:
1. Luis Castillo
2. Mark Loretta
3. Kaz Matsui
4. Tadahito Iguchi
5. Miguel Cairo: The Rangers have their starting second baseman in Ian Kinsler. Miguel Cairo would be more than happy to sign as a back-up, because he will probably get a minor league deal. Miguel played for the Cardinals last year and struggled, batting .253 with no homers and only 15 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs minor-league deal with the Angels
6. Marcus Giles
3rd base:
1. A-ROD
2. Mike Lowell
3. Tony Batista
4. Aaron Boone
5. Russell Branyan
6. Geoff Blum: There’s nobody on this list that we can get and promise a starting role to, since we can’t get A-ROD or Lowell. Blum would be a good guy to have as a back-up third baseman. Last year, he hit .252 with 5 homers and 33 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $950 K deal with the Astros
7. Mark Bellhorn
8. Jeff Cirillo
9. Tony Graffanino
10. Pedro Feliz
11. Cesar Isturis
Short Stop:
1. David Eckstein
2. Tomohiro Nioka
3. Royce Clayton: We definitely don’t need a short-stop, but he would be good as a possible second base/short-stop back-up. He also would probably accept a deal that would have him fighting to make the team in Spring Training. Last year, with the Red Sox, he hit .246 with 1 home run and 12 RBI’s.
Prediction: Signs 1 year $750 K deal with the Royals
4. Ramon Martinez
5. John McDonald
6. Omar Visquel
Catcher: The Rangers are deep at this position so none of these free agents are a fit.
1. Jorge Posada
2. Pudge
3. Paul Lo Duca
4. Michael Barrett
5. Jason Kendall
6. Brad Ausmus
7. Mike Piazza
8. Rod Barajas
9. Doug Mirabelli
10. Yorvit Torrealba
11. Mike Lieberthal
12. Jason Larue
13. Sandy Alomar Jr.
Outfield:
1. Torii Hunter: Torii can play defense really well as he is a 7-time gold glove winner. He is also a 2-time all-star. Last year, he hit .287 with 28 homers and 107 RBI’s. He lives in Dallas, Texas.
Prediction: Signs 6-year, $96M deal with the Rangers
2. Andruw Jones
3. Aaron Rowand
4. Kosuke Fukudome
5. Kenny Lofton
6. Barry Bonds
7. Jose Guillen
8. Corey Patterson
9. Milton Bradley
10. Shawn Green
11. Brad Wilkerson
12. Luis Gonzalez
13. Sammy Sosa
14. Shannon Stewart
15. Mike Cameron
16. Geoff Jenkins
17. Cliff Floyd
18. Trot Nixon
19. Jose Cruz Jr.
20. Rob Mackowiak
21. Ryan Klesko
22. Eric Hinske
Starting Pitcher:
1. Kazumi Saito
2. Carlos Silva
3. Freddy Garcia
4. Kenshin Kawamaki
5. Kyle Lohse: Last year Kyle Lohse struggled, going 9-12 with a 4.62 ERA, but he almost pitched 200 innings. But his numbers have been improving and he has a great fastball. He is only 29 years old. For the Rangers he would be the #2 or #3 starting pitcher.
Prediction: Signs 5-year, $46 million contract with the Rangers
6. Livan Hernandez
7. Jason Jennings
8. Tom Glavine
9. Shawn Chacon
10. Jeff Weaver
11. Kenny Rogers
12. Randy Wolf
13. Jeremy Affeldt
14. Tony Armas
15. Bartolo Colon
16. Casey Fossum
17. Matt Clement
18. Shawn Estes
19. Mark Redman
Relief Pitchers:
1. Scott Linebrink
2. Octavio Dotel
3. Ron Mahay: Ron is a very good left-handed relief pitcher. Last year he went 3-0 with a 2.55 ERA. Even though he’s 36, he’s showing no signs of wearing down.
Prediction: Signs 2 year $5 million deal with the Angels
4. Kerry Wood
5. Antonio Alfonseca
6. Scott Eyre
Results of last week’s poll:
Who is the number one priority for the Rangers to re-sign?
None – 47%
Jamey Wright – 29%
Brad Wilkerson – 9%
Sammy Sosa – 9%
Jerry Hairston – 6%
Come back next week for a special on former ballparks.
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Playoff Awards
This week I will give my playoff awards. These are based on the whole playoffs, not just one series.
AL Awards:
AL Playoff MVP: Mike Lowell: .353 AVG, 2 HR, 15 RBI, .410 OBP: He was the World Series MVP, has a batting average over .350 and 15 RBI.
Runner-up: Kevin Youkilis
Also should be mentioned: Jacoby Ellsbury
AL Playoff Cy Young: Josh Beckett: 4-0, 1.20 ERA, 35 K, 30 IP: Josh Beckett tied the best playoff record ever, had more strike-outs than innings and a 1.20 ERA.
Runner-up: Curt Schilling
Also should be mentioned: Paul Byrd
AL Manager of the Playoffs: Terry Francona: The Red Sox won the World Series.
Runner-up: Eric Wedge
NL Awards:
NL Playoff MVP: Matt Holliday: .289 AVG, 5 HR, 10 RBI, .319 OBP: Nobody really dominated in hitting in the NL playoffs, but Matt Holliday’s 5 home runs barely puts him ahead of Kaz Matsui. Stephen Drew probably did better but his team didn’t get as far.
Runner-up: Kaz Matsui
Also should be mentioned: Stephen Drew
NL Playoff Cy Young: Ubaldo Jimenez: 0-1, 2.25 ERA, 13 K, 16 IP: He was 0-1, but he had a 2.25 ERA, the best of any starter that made it out of the divisional series.
Runner-up: Doug Davis
Also should be mentioned: Brandon Webb
NL Manager of the Playoffs: Clint Hurdle: The Rockies won the NL pennant.
Runner-up: Bob Melvin
The Red Sox dominated the World Series winning by a total score of 29-10. That’s an average score of 7.25-2.5 and an average deficit of 4.75. The Red Sox have won the World Series 2 times in the past 4 years, both series were sweeps.
3 of the past 4 World Series have been sweeps, the other one went to 5 games. The last time there was a seven game World Series was in 2002. There hasn’t been a World Series MVP with a last name starting with the letter L since Mickey Lolich in 1968. But it’s only been since ’04 when someone has won the World Series MVP with a first name starting with the letter M and that was Manny Ramirez. The Rockies have one of the five youngest-average starting pitching rotation in the World Series with an average age of 25.8.
Other MLB notes: Jose Guillen is a free agent. The Mariners didn’t pick up his contract. The Yankees picked up the $16 million contract on Bobby Abreu. The Rangers are tied for the 7th least amount of free agents.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best GM out of the last 3 Ranger GMs?
Doug Melvin – 75%
Jon Daniels – 18%
John Hart – 7%
Come back next week for a free agent analysis.
AL Awards:
AL Playoff MVP: Mike Lowell: .353 AVG, 2 HR, 15 RBI, .410 OBP: He was the World Series MVP, has a batting average over .350 and 15 RBI.
Runner-up: Kevin Youkilis
Also should be mentioned: Jacoby Ellsbury
AL Playoff Cy Young: Josh Beckett: 4-0, 1.20 ERA, 35 K, 30 IP: Josh Beckett tied the best playoff record ever, had more strike-outs than innings and a 1.20 ERA.
Runner-up: Curt Schilling
Also should be mentioned: Paul Byrd
AL Manager of the Playoffs: Terry Francona: The Red Sox won the World Series.
Runner-up: Eric Wedge
NL Awards:
NL Playoff MVP: Matt Holliday: .289 AVG, 5 HR, 10 RBI, .319 OBP: Nobody really dominated in hitting in the NL playoffs, but Matt Holliday’s 5 home runs barely puts him ahead of Kaz Matsui. Stephen Drew probably did better but his team didn’t get as far.
Runner-up: Kaz Matsui
Also should be mentioned: Stephen Drew
NL Playoff Cy Young: Ubaldo Jimenez: 0-1, 2.25 ERA, 13 K, 16 IP: He was 0-1, but he had a 2.25 ERA, the best of any starter that made it out of the divisional series.
Runner-up: Doug Davis
Also should be mentioned: Brandon Webb
NL Manager of the Playoffs: Clint Hurdle: The Rockies won the NL pennant.
Runner-up: Bob Melvin
The Red Sox dominated the World Series winning by a total score of 29-10. That’s an average score of 7.25-2.5 and an average deficit of 4.75. The Red Sox have won the World Series 2 times in the past 4 years, both series were sweeps.
3 of the past 4 World Series have been sweeps, the other one went to 5 games. The last time there was a seven game World Series was in 2002. There hasn’t been a World Series MVP with a last name starting with the letter L since Mickey Lolich in 1968. But it’s only been since ’04 when someone has won the World Series MVP with a first name starting with the letter M and that was Manny Ramirez. The Rockies have one of the five youngest-average starting pitching rotation in the World Series with an average age of 25.8.
Other MLB notes: Jose Guillen is a free agent. The Mariners didn’t pick up his contract. The Yankees picked up the $16 million contract on Bobby Abreu. The Rangers are tied for the 7th least amount of free agents.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best GM out of the last 3 Ranger GMs?
Doug Melvin – 75%
Jon Daniels – 18%
John Hart – 7%
Come back next week for a free agent analysis.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Jon Daniels Trade Analysis Part 2 and GM Comparison
This is an updated analysis of the trades Jon Daniels has made as Rangers GM. I’ll be reviewing all trades he made after September 1, 2006 (see my 12/9/06 blog for analysis of his trades before then). Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. At the end, I’ll compare Jon’s record so far to John Hart’s and Doug Melvin’s.
21. 12-7-06 Acquired minor league C Salomon Manriquez from Colorado in exchange for cash considerations.
Win – Any time you get a decent player for cash (which isn’t even promised in this deal), it’s a win. Manriquez played for Frisco this year, batting .275 with 16 homers and 53 RBI. He should get an invitation to major league spring training again next year.
Record: 10-4-7
22. 12-23-06 Acquired RHP Brandon McCarthy and OF David Paisano from the White Sox in exchange for LHP John Danks, RHP Nick Masset and RHP Jacob Rasner.
Win - John Danks has great potential, but this year had a 6-13 record and a 5.50 ERA for the White Sox. He only pitched 139 innings. Nick Masset had a 2-3 record and a 7.09 ERA in 39.1 innings this year for the White Sox, but he also has good potential. Jacob Rasner for the single-A Kannapolis Intimidators had a 7-11 record with a 6.83 ERA in 139.2 innings pitched, and does not have much potential. None of the players we traded away had very good years, the lowest ERA being 5.50. But Paisano played awful for the Lumberkings (single-A), batting .203 with 3 HR and 20 RBI’s in 306 at-bats. He also struck-out 85 times. His only good stat was 20 stolen bases. McCarthy started the season off terribly and ended the season with a blister on his middle finger, but in the 101.2 innings he did pitch, he managed to lower his ERA to 4.87 and pick up five wins with ten losses. It’s still too early to really tell, but based on last year’s performances; I’d say that it’s barely a win.
Record: 11-4-7
23. 1-12-07 Acquired C Chris Stewart from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for RHP John Lujan.
Win – Chris Stewart isn’t a great batter, as for the Rangers last year he had a .300 OBP and a .243 AVG and for the Redhawks (triple-A) he had a .294 OBP and a .242 AVG. But he fields very well, as with the Rangers last year he threw out 50% of base-stealers and made 2 errors in 105.1 innings caught. He had a .981 fielding percentage. John doesn’t have that much potential but this year’s stats were very good. John had a 3.73 ERA with 11 saves and 90 strike-outs in 82 innings.
Record: 12-4-7
24. 4-19-07 Traded LHP Daniel Haigwood to Boston for RHP Scott Shoemaker and cash considerations.
Win - Daniel Haigwood struggled with the Red Sox, with a 4-5 record and a 5.31 ERA between Pawtucket (triple-A) and Portland (double-A). Scott Shoemaker went 7-3 with a 4.35 ERA and 111.2 innings pitched between Portland (double-A), Bakersfield (high-A), Oklahoma (triple-A), and Frisco (double-A).
Record: 13-4-7
25. 7-27-07 Traded OF Kenny Lofton to the Indians for nonroster C Max Ramirez
Win – Kenny Lofton’s contract was expiring after this year anyway and Max Ramirez had good stats, batting .304 with 16 HR and 82 RBI between Kinston (high-A) and Bakersfield (high-A). Ramirez will be in the mix for the Rangers’ catcher of the future.
Record: 14-4-7
26. 7-31-07 Acquired C/1B Jarrod Saltalamacchia, nonroster SS Elvis Andrus, nonroster LHP Matt Harrison, nonroster LHP Beau Jones and nonroster RHP Neftali Feliz from the Braves in exchange for 1B Mark Teixeira and LHP Ron Mahay
Win - Even though Mark is a great player and has done great for the Rangers, he was going to be gone after next year and so they had to trade him. Ron Mahay had been with the Rangers since 2003, with ERA’s of 3.18, 2.55, 6.81, 3.95, and 2.77. Jarrod Saltalamacchia was ranked the 36th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year and was also ranked the best prospect in the NL East. Elvis Andrus only hit .257 this year but he probably is the best fielder in all of the Rangers’ minor league system. Elvis was also ranked the 65th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year. This year Harrison was 5-7 with a 3.39 ERA in 116.2 IP and last year he was 11-8 with a 3.35 ERA in 158.2 IP. Matt was ranked the 90th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year. Beau Jones has a good fastball and a very good curveball but awful control as he has walked 121 batters over the last two years. Neftali was 2-2 with a 2.55 ERA in 42.1 innings this year. But he also has 55 strike-outs. Neftali was ranked the 14th best prospect in all of the Rangers minor league system by Baseball America. This was a great trade because we got some top prospects in exchange for players that weren’t going to be with us much longer.
Record: 15-4-7
27. 7-31-07 Acquired LHP Kason Gabbard, OF David Murphy and nonroster OF Engel Beltre from the Red Sox for RHP Eric Gagne and cash
Win – Kason Gabbard is a talented lefty who should be pretty good for us. This year Gabbard went 6-1 with a 4.65 ERA between Boston and Texas. David Murphy played great, hitting .340 with 2 HR and 14 RBI. Engel Beltre has great raw potential but it is very raw. Engel hit .243 with 9 HR and 29 RBI for the year. Eric Gagne pitched awful after leaving the Rangers with a 2-2 record and a 6.75 ERA and 3 out of 3 save opportunities were blown for the Red Sox.
Record: 16-4-7
Comparison:
Doug Melvin:
Record: 15-14-16
Winning percentage: 52%
Number of trades: 45 in 7 years (average of 6.4 trades per year)
Rangers record during Melvin years: 568-548 (.509 winning percentage)
John Hart:Record: 7-11-18
Winning percentage: 39%
Number of trades: 36 in 4 years (average of 9 trades per year)
Rangers record during Hart years: 311-337 (.480 winning percentage)
Jon Daniels:
Record: 16-4-7
Winning percentage: 80%
Number of trades: 27 in 2 years (average of 13.5 trades per year)
Rangers record during Daniels years: 155-169 (.478 winning percentage)
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in 2001?
Justin Duchscherer – 84%
Rob Bell – 11%
Erasmo Ramirez – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for my playoff awards.
21. 12-7-06 Acquired minor league C Salomon Manriquez from Colorado in exchange for cash considerations.
Win – Any time you get a decent player for cash (which isn’t even promised in this deal), it’s a win. Manriquez played for Frisco this year, batting .275 with 16 homers and 53 RBI. He should get an invitation to major league spring training again next year.
Record: 10-4-7
22. 12-23-06 Acquired RHP Brandon McCarthy and OF David Paisano from the White Sox in exchange for LHP John Danks, RHP Nick Masset and RHP Jacob Rasner.
Win - John Danks has great potential, but this year had a 6-13 record and a 5.50 ERA for the White Sox. He only pitched 139 innings. Nick Masset had a 2-3 record and a 7.09 ERA in 39.1 innings this year for the White Sox, but he also has good potential. Jacob Rasner for the single-A Kannapolis Intimidators had a 7-11 record with a 6.83 ERA in 139.2 innings pitched, and does not have much potential. None of the players we traded away had very good years, the lowest ERA being 5.50. But Paisano played awful for the Lumberkings (single-A), batting .203 with 3 HR and 20 RBI’s in 306 at-bats. He also struck-out 85 times. His only good stat was 20 stolen bases. McCarthy started the season off terribly and ended the season with a blister on his middle finger, but in the 101.2 innings he did pitch, he managed to lower his ERA to 4.87 and pick up five wins with ten losses. It’s still too early to really tell, but based on last year’s performances; I’d say that it’s barely a win.
Record: 11-4-7
23. 1-12-07 Acquired C Chris Stewart from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for RHP John Lujan.
Win – Chris Stewart isn’t a great batter, as for the Rangers last year he had a .300 OBP and a .243 AVG and for the Redhawks (triple-A) he had a .294 OBP and a .242 AVG. But he fields very well, as with the Rangers last year he threw out 50% of base-stealers and made 2 errors in 105.1 innings caught. He had a .981 fielding percentage. John doesn’t have that much potential but this year’s stats were very good. John had a 3.73 ERA with 11 saves and 90 strike-outs in 82 innings.
Record: 12-4-7
24. 4-19-07 Traded LHP Daniel Haigwood to Boston for RHP Scott Shoemaker and cash considerations.
Win - Daniel Haigwood struggled with the Red Sox, with a 4-5 record and a 5.31 ERA between Pawtucket (triple-A) and Portland (double-A). Scott Shoemaker went 7-3 with a 4.35 ERA and 111.2 innings pitched between Portland (double-A), Bakersfield (high-A), Oklahoma (triple-A), and Frisco (double-A).
Record: 13-4-7
25. 7-27-07 Traded OF Kenny Lofton to the Indians for nonroster C Max Ramirez
Win – Kenny Lofton’s contract was expiring after this year anyway and Max Ramirez had good stats, batting .304 with 16 HR and 82 RBI between Kinston (high-A) and Bakersfield (high-A). Ramirez will be in the mix for the Rangers’ catcher of the future.
Record: 14-4-7
26. 7-31-07 Acquired C/1B Jarrod Saltalamacchia, nonroster SS Elvis Andrus, nonroster LHP Matt Harrison, nonroster LHP Beau Jones and nonroster RHP Neftali Feliz from the Braves in exchange for 1B Mark Teixeira and LHP Ron Mahay
Win - Even though Mark is a great player and has done great for the Rangers, he was going to be gone after next year and so they had to trade him. Ron Mahay had been with the Rangers since 2003, with ERA’s of 3.18, 2.55, 6.81, 3.95, and 2.77. Jarrod Saltalamacchia was ranked the 36th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year and was also ranked the best prospect in the NL East. Elvis Andrus only hit .257 this year but he probably is the best fielder in all of the Rangers’ minor league system. Elvis was also ranked the 65th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year. This year Harrison was 5-7 with a 3.39 ERA in 116.2 IP and last year he was 11-8 with a 3.35 ERA in 158.2 IP. Matt was ranked the 90th best prospect in all of baseball by Baseball America at the beginning of the year. Beau Jones has a good fastball and a very good curveball but awful control as he has walked 121 batters over the last two years. Neftali was 2-2 with a 2.55 ERA in 42.1 innings this year. But he also has 55 strike-outs. Neftali was ranked the 14th best prospect in all of the Rangers minor league system by Baseball America. This was a great trade because we got some top prospects in exchange for players that weren’t going to be with us much longer.
Record: 15-4-7
27. 7-31-07 Acquired LHP Kason Gabbard, OF David Murphy and nonroster OF Engel Beltre from the Red Sox for RHP Eric Gagne and cash
Win – Kason Gabbard is a talented lefty who should be pretty good for us. This year Gabbard went 6-1 with a 4.65 ERA between Boston and Texas. David Murphy played great, hitting .340 with 2 HR and 14 RBI. Engel Beltre has great raw potential but it is very raw. Engel hit .243 with 9 HR and 29 RBI for the year. Eric Gagne pitched awful after leaving the Rangers with a 2-2 record and a 6.75 ERA and 3 out of 3 save opportunities were blown for the Red Sox.
Record: 16-4-7
Comparison:
Doug Melvin:
Record: 15-14-16
Winning percentage: 52%
Number of trades: 45 in 7 years (average of 6.4 trades per year)
Rangers record during Melvin years: 568-548 (.509 winning percentage)
John Hart:Record: 7-11-18
Winning percentage: 39%
Number of trades: 36 in 4 years (average of 9 trades per year)
Rangers record during Hart years: 311-337 (.480 winning percentage)
Jon Daniels:
Record: 16-4-7
Winning percentage: 80%
Number of trades: 27 in 2 years (average of 13.5 trades per year)
Rangers record during Daniels years: 155-169 (.478 winning percentage)
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in 2001?
Justin Duchscherer – 84%
Rob Bell – 11%
Erasmo Ramirez – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for my playoff awards.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Doug Melvin Trade Analysis Part 7
This is part 7 of an analysis of the trades Doug Melvin made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover 2001, his last year as GM. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
41. 5/8/01 The Montreal Expos traded Mike Johnson to the Texas Rangers for Darwin Cubillan.
Tie – After the trade Darwin Cubillan only pitched 26 and a third innings for the Expos and Mike Johnson never played for us.
Record: 13-13-15
42. 6/12/01 The Boston Red Sox traded Justin Duchscherer to the Texas Rangers for Doug Mirabelli.
Win – Justin only pitched 14 and two thirds innings for the Rangers before John Hart made the awful decision of trading him to the A’s, but 4 out of the last 5 years he has had an ERA under 3.35, including a 2.21 ERA an a 2.91 ERA. Doug Mirabelli is a good back-up catcher, averaging about 55 games a year since the trade. Doug is great defensively but he doesn’t hit very well, only hitting .250 two of the six years after the trade. This was a steal by Melvin. It’s not his fault that Hart messed it up.
Record: 14-13-15
43. 6/15/01 The Cincinnati Reds traded Rob Bell to the Texas Rangers for Ruben Mateo and Edwin Encarnacion.
Loss – Rob Bell only played 1 and a half years for us, with ERA’s of 7.18 and 6.22. Ruben Mateo has been a big disappointment, never hitting .260 in a year and never hitting 5 home runs in a year, but Edwin Encarnacion is very good. He has only played in the majors for 3 years, but this year, he hit .289 with 16 HR and 76 RBI, 25 doubles and 8 stolen bases. He also has a lot of potential.
Record: 14-14-15
44. 7/24/01 The San Francisco Giants traded Chris Magruder, Erasmo Ramirez, and Todd Ozias (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Andres Galarraga.
Win - Chris Magruder only had 29 at-bats for us and Todd Ozias never made it to the majors, but Erasmo Ramirez had three good years for us. After the trade Andres Galarraga had one more good year and one more decent year. In ’01 for the Giants he hit .288 with 7 HR and 35 RBI’s. In ’02 with the Expos he hit .260 with 9 HR and 40 RBI’s, but in ’03 as the 5th oldest player in all of baseball at the age of 43 he hit .301 with 12 HR and 42 RBI’s, playing in 110 games. But he was only here on a one-year deal and we wouldn’t have had him for those last two years anyway. So to get three good years from Ramirez instead of half a year of Galarraga is a good trade.
Record: 15-14-15
45. 8/31/01 The Texas Rangers traded Randy Velarde to the New York Yankees for players to be named later. The New York Yankees sent Randy Flores (October 12, 2001) and Rosman Garcia (October 11, 2001) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - This was Doug Melvin’s last trade as Rangers GM. After the trade Randy Velarde only played in 71 more games over two years, hitting .152 and .226. Randy Flores only pitched 12 innings for the Rangers with a 4.50 ERA and Rosman Garcia only pitched 53 innings for the Rangers with a 5.94 ERA.
Record: 15-14-16
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in 2000?
Michael Young – 95%
Brant Brown – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for an updated analysis of Jon Daniels’ trades and a comparison between the records of Melvin, Hart, and Daniels.
41. 5/8/01 The Montreal Expos traded Mike Johnson to the Texas Rangers for Darwin Cubillan.
Tie – After the trade Darwin Cubillan only pitched 26 and a third innings for the Expos and Mike Johnson never played for us.
Record: 13-13-15
42. 6/12/01 The Boston Red Sox traded Justin Duchscherer to the Texas Rangers for Doug Mirabelli.
Win – Justin only pitched 14 and two thirds innings for the Rangers before John Hart made the awful decision of trading him to the A’s, but 4 out of the last 5 years he has had an ERA under 3.35, including a 2.21 ERA an a 2.91 ERA. Doug Mirabelli is a good back-up catcher, averaging about 55 games a year since the trade. Doug is great defensively but he doesn’t hit very well, only hitting .250 two of the six years after the trade. This was a steal by Melvin. It’s not his fault that Hart messed it up.
Record: 14-13-15
43. 6/15/01 The Cincinnati Reds traded Rob Bell to the Texas Rangers for Ruben Mateo and Edwin Encarnacion.
Loss – Rob Bell only played 1 and a half years for us, with ERA’s of 7.18 and 6.22. Ruben Mateo has been a big disappointment, never hitting .260 in a year and never hitting 5 home runs in a year, but Edwin Encarnacion is very good. He has only played in the majors for 3 years, but this year, he hit .289 with 16 HR and 76 RBI, 25 doubles and 8 stolen bases. He also has a lot of potential.
Record: 14-14-15
44. 7/24/01 The San Francisco Giants traded Chris Magruder, Erasmo Ramirez, and Todd Ozias (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Andres Galarraga.
Win - Chris Magruder only had 29 at-bats for us and Todd Ozias never made it to the majors, but Erasmo Ramirez had three good years for us. After the trade Andres Galarraga had one more good year and one more decent year. In ’01 for the Giants he hit .288 with 7 HR and 35 RBI’s. In ’02 with the Expos he hit .260 with 9 HR and 40 RBI’s, but in ’03 as the 5th oldest player in all of baseball at the age of 43 he hit .301 with 12 HR and 42 RBI’s, playing in 110 games. But he was only here on a one-year deal and we wouldn’t have had him for those last two years anyway. So to get three good years from Ramirez instead of half a year of Galarraga is a good trade.
Record: 15-14-15
45. 8/31/01 The Texas Rangers traded Randy Velarde to the New York Yankees for players to be named later. The New York Yankees sent Randy Flores (October 12, 2001) and Rosman Garcia (October 11, 2001) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Tie - This was Doug Melvin’s last trade as Rangers GM. After the trade Randy Velarde only played in 71 more games over two years, hitting .152 and .226. Randy Flores only pitched 12 innings for the Rangers with a 4.50 ERA and Rosman Garcia only pitched 53 innings for the Rangers with a 5.94 ERA.
Record: 15-14-16
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers got in 2000?
Michael Young – 95%
Brant Brown – 5%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for an updated analysis of Jon Daniels’ trades and a comparison between the records of Melvin, Hart, and Daniels.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Doug Melvin Trade Analysis Part 6
This is part 6 of an analysis of the trades Doug Melvin made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover the end of 2000. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
35. 7/19/00 - The Texas Rangers traded Esteban Loaiza to the Toronto Blue Jays for Darwin Cubillan and Michael Young.
Win – Esteban has only had 1 good year since the trade and he had no good years for the Blue Jays. His records for his three Blue Jay years were 5-7, 11-11, and 9-10, never getting 200 innings in a year as a Blue Jay. Darwin Cubillan only has 70 career innings pitched and only 17.2 as a Ranger. But Michael Young has done incredibly well for the Rangers, becoming only the third player to have 200 hits for five straight years since 1940. He has hit above .305 all 5 of those years. He has also had one 100 RBI season and two 20-90 seasons (HR-RBI). Also, he has won the batting title, has been All-Star game MVP and has set the Rangers record for most single-season hits.
Record: 13-8-14
36. 7/28/00 - The Cleveland Indians traded Ricky Ledee to the Texas Rangers for David Segui.
Loss – Ricky Ledee struggled for his 1 and a half years that he played here batting .235 and then .231 while David Segui had a couple of good platoon years after the trade. He hit .332 and then .301 with 46 RBI both years.
Record: 13-9-14
37. 8/4/00 - The Texas Rangers traded Dave Martinez to the Toronto Blue Jays for a player to be named later. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Peter Munro (August 8, 2000) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Loss – Dave had two more good years in him batting .311 and .287 but his power numbers were nothing with 2 homers both years and just about 20 RBI both years. Peter Munro never even played for the Rangers.
Record: 13-10-14
38. 11/17/00 - The Oakland Athletics traded Randy Velarde to the Texas Rangers for Aaron Harang and Ryan Cullen (minors).
Loss – Randy Velarde only played half a year for the Rangers batting .297 with 9 HR and 31 RBI’s, but half a year isn’t worth Harang. Aaron has had an ERA in the 3.00’s for three straight years, has gotten 16 straight wins for two straight years, has pitched 230 innings for two straight years, has gotten 215 strikeouts for two straight years, and his WHIP has been under 1.3 for three straight years. And he’s done all this with Cincinnati.
Record: 13-11-14
39. 12/14/00 - The Chicago White Sox traded Aaron Myette and Brian Schmack to the Texas Rangers for Royce Clayton.
Loss – Royce Clayton has had 6 decent years since the trade while Brian Schmack never played for us and Aaron Myette’s ERA for the two years he was here were 7.14 and 10.06. We needed to trade Clayton because of the A-Rod signing but we could have gotten more for him.
Record: 13-12-14
40. 12/15/00 - The Detroit Tigers traded Brandon Villafuerte and Kevin Mobley (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Matt Perisho.
Loss - Brandon Villafuerte pitched 6 games for us with a 14.29 ERA. Kevin Mobley never played in the majors while Matt Perisho had one decent year for the Marlins with a 4.40 ERA and one great year for the Marlins with a 1.93 ERA.
Record: 13-13-14
Results of last weeks poll:
Who do you think will win the World Series?
Red Sox – 52%
Rockies – 22%
Indians – 15%
D’Backs – 11%
Come back next week for my World Series prediction.
35. 7/19/00 - The Texas Rangers traded Esteban Loaiza to the Toronto Blue Jays for Darwin Cubillan and Michael Young.
Win – Esteban has only had 1 good year since the trade and he had no good years for the Blue Jays. His records for his three Blue Jay years were 5-7, 11-11, and 9-10, never getting 200 innings in a year as a Blue Jay. Darwin Cubillan only has 70 career innings pitched and only 17.2 as a Ranger. But Michael Young has done incredibly well for the Rangers, becoming only the third player to have 200 hits for five straight years since 1940. He has hit above .305 all 5 of those years. He has also had one 100 RBI season and two 20-90 seasons (HR-RBI). Also, he has won the batting title, has been All-Star game MVP and has set the Rangers record for most single-season hits.
Record: 13-8-14
36. 7/28/00 - The Cleveland Indians traded Ricky Ledee to the Texas Rangers for David Segui.
Loss – Ricky Ledee struggled for his 1 and a half years that he played here batting .235 and then .231 while David Segui had a couple of good platoon years after the trade. He hit .332 and then .301 with 46 RBI both years.
Record: 13-9-14
37. 8/4/00 - The Texas Rangers traded Dave Martinez to the Toronto Blue Jays for a player to be named later. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Peter Munro (August 8, 2000) to the Texas Rangers to complete the trade.
Loss – Dave had two more good years in him batting .311 and .287 but his power numbers were nothing with 2 homers both years and just about 20 RBI both years. Peter Munro never even played for the Rangers.
Record: 13-10-14
38. 11/17/00 - The Oakland Athletics traded Randy Velarde to the Texas Rangers for Aaron Harang and Ryan Cullen (minors).
Loss – Randy Velarde only played half a year for the Rangers batting .297 with 9 HR and 31 RBI’s, but half a year isn’t worth Harang. Aaron has had an ERA in the 3.00’s for three straight years, has gotten 16 straight wins for two straight years, has pitched 230 innings for two straight years, has gotten 215 strikeouts for two straight years, and his WHIP has been under 1.3 for three straight years. And he’s done all this with Cincinnati.
Record: 13-11-14
39. 12/14/00 - The Chicago White Sox traded Aaron Myette and Brian Schmack to the Texas Rangers for Royce Clayton.
Loss – Royce Clayton has had 6 decent years since the trade while Brian Schmack never played for us and Aaron Myette’s ERA for the two years he was here were 7.14 and 10.06. We needed to trade Clayton because of the A-Rod signing but we could have gotten more for him.
Record: 13-12-14
40. 12/15/00 - The Detroit Tigers traded Brandon Villafuerte and Kevin Mobley (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Matt Perisho.
Loss - Brandon Villafuerte pitched 6 games for us with a 14.29 ERA. Kevin Mobley never played in the majors while Matt Perisho had one decent year for the Marlins with a 4.40 ERA and one great year for the Marlins with a 1.93 ERA.
Record: 13-13-14
Results of last weeks poll:
Who do you think will win the World Series?
Red Sox – 52%
Rockies – 22%
Indians – 15%
D’Backs – 11%
Come back next week for my World Series prediction.
Sunday, October 07, 2007
Playoff Predictions
This week I will give my playoff predictions.
ALDS:
Indians over Yankees in 3
Red Sox over Angels in 3
ALCS:
Indians over Red Sox in 7: They both have great pitching, but all 5 of the Indians starting pitching have an ERA of less than 4.60, while only 3 of the Red Sox starting pitchers do. So far the Indians have outscored the Yankees 14-4, while the Red Sox have outscored the Angels 10-3. Also the Indians have 186 home runs and the Red Sox only have 143.
NLDS:
Rockies over Phillies in 3
D’Backs over Cubs in 3
NLCS:
D’Backs over Rockies in 6: The D’Backs have great pitching and the Rockies have great hitting. Pitching wins championships. D’Backs rotation in order have ERA’s of 3.01 (Brandon Webb), 4.93 (Livan Hernandez), 4.25 (Doug Davis), 4.30 (Micah Owings), and 5.03 (Edgar Gonzalez) while the Rockies have 4.22 (Jeff Francis), 3.43 (Franklin Morales), 4.28 (Ubaldo Jimenez), 4.94 (Josh Fogg), and 7.15 (Elmer Dessens). The Rockies postseason score is 16-8 and the D’Backs one is 16-6.
World Series:
Indians over D’Backs in 7: They both have incredible pitching, but the Indians have better hitting.
C: Victor Martinez CLE vs. Chris Snyder ARI
Winner: Victor Martinez: Victor Martinez had a .300 batting average with 25 home runs while Chris Snyder only hit .252.
1B: Ryan Garko CLE vs. Connor Jackson ARI
Winner: Ryan Garko: The averages are similar, but Garko has better power numbers.
2B: Asdrubal Cabrera CLE vs. Alberto Callapso ARI
Winner: Asdrubal Cabrera: Cabrera hit .283, while Callapso only hit .215.
3B: Casey Blake CLE vs. Chad Tracy ARI
Winner: Casey Blake: Blake has a better batting average (.270), more home runs (18) and more RBI’s (78) than Tracy.
SS: Johnny Peralta CLE vs. Stephen Drew ARI
Winner: Johnny Peralta: Stephen Drew is only batting .238.
RF: Franklin Gutierrez CLE vs. Justin Upton ARI
Winner: Franklin Gutierrez: Upton’s batting .221 while Gutierrez is batting .266.
LF: Kenny Lofton CLE vs. Eric Byrnes ARI
Winner: Kenny Lofton: In the regular season I would choose Byrnes, but Lofton is just so good in the playoffs.
CF: Grady Sizemore CLE vs. Chris Young ARI
Winner: Grady Sizemore: they both have good power and stolen base numbers but Chris Young is only batting .237.
DH: Travis Hafner CLE vs. Tony Clark ARI
Winner: Travis Hafner: Travis Hafner had 100 RBI’s this year.
G1SP: CC Sabathia CLE vs. Brandon Webb ARI
Winner: CC Sabathia: The pitchers are very close, but in Cleveland, Sabathia gets the edge.
G2SP: Fausto Carmona CLE vs. Livan Hernandez ARI
Winner: Fausto Carmona: Carmona had a 1.14 ERA in September.
G3SP: Jake Westbrook CLE vs. Doug Davis ARI
Winner: Jake Westbrook: Westbrook had a 4.14 ERA in September.
G4SP: Paul Byrd CLE vs. Micah Owings ARI
Winner: Micah Owings: Micah has a 4.30 ERA while Byrd has a 4.57 ERA and it’s in Arizona.
G5SP: CC Sabathia CLE vs. Brandon Webb ARI
Winner: Brandon Webb: The pitchers are very close, but in Arizona, Webb gets the edge.
G6SP: Jake Westbrook CLE vs. Doug Davis ARI
Winner: Jake Westbrook: It’s in Cleveland and they both have done pretty well this year, but Westbrook had a better September so he has more confidence.
G7SP: Fausto Carmona CLE vs. Livan Hernandez ARI
Winner: Fausto Carmona: Hernandez has an ERA of almost 5.00 while Carmona is in Cy Young talk.
Indians 14, D’Backs 2
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win NL MVP?
Matt Holliday – 62%
Jimmy Rollins – 15%
Carlos Beltran – 8%
Prince Fielder – 8%
Ryan Howard – 8%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for part 6 of the Doug Melvin Trade Analysis.
ALDS:
Indians over Yankees in 3
Red Sox over Angels in 3
ALCS:
Indians over Red Sox in 7: They both have great pitching, but all 5 of the Indians starting pitching have an ERA of less than 4.60, while only 3 of the Red Sox starting pitchers do. So far the Indians have outscored the Yankees 14-4, while the Red Sox have outscored the Angels 10-3. Also the Indians have 186 home runs and the Red Sox only have 143.
NLDS:
Rockies over Phillies in 3
D’Backs over Cubs in 3
NLCS:
D’Backs over Rockies in 6: The D’Backs have great pitching and the Rockies have great hitting. Pitching wins championships. D’Backs rotation in order have ERA’s of 3.01 (Brandon Webb), 4.93 (Livan Hernandez), 4.25 (Doug Davis), 4.30 (Micah Owings), and 5.03 (Edgar Gonzalez) while the Rockies have 4.22 (Jeff Francis), 3.43 (Franklin Morales), 4.28 (Ubaldo Jimenez), 4.94 (Josh Fogg), and 7.15 (Elmer Dessens). The Rockies postseason score is 16-8 and the D’Backs one is 16-6.
World Series:
Indians over D’Backs in 7: They both have incredible pitching, but the Indians have better hitting.
C: Victor Martinez CLE vs. Chris Snyder ARI
Winner: Victor Martinez: Victor Martinez had a .300 batting average with 25 home runs while Chris Snyder only hit .252.
1B: Ryan Garko CLE vs. Connor Jackson ARI
Winner: Ryan Garko: The averages are similar, but Garko has better power numbers.
2B: Asdrubal Cabrera CLE vs. Alberto Callapso ARI
Winner: Asdrubal Cabrera: Cabrera hit .283, while Callapso only hit .215.
3B: Casey Blake CLE vs. Chad Tracy ARI
Winner: Casey Blake: Blake has a better batting average (.270), more home runs (18) and more RBI’s (78) than Tracy.
SS: Johnny Peralta CLE vs. Stephen Drew ARI
Winner: Johnny Peralta: Stephen Drew is only batting .238.
RF: Franklin Gutierrez CLE vs. Justin Upton ARI
Winner: Franklin Gutierrez: Upton’s batting .221 while Gutierrez is batting .266.
LF: Kenny Lofton CLE vs. Eric Byrnes ARI
Winner: Kenny Lofton: In the regular season I would choose Byrnes, but Lofton is just so good in the playoffs.
CF: Grady Sizemore CLE vs. Chris Young ARI
Winner: Grady Sizemore: they both have good power and stolen base numbers but Chris Young is only batting .237.
DH: Travis Hafner CLE vs. Tony Clark ARI
Winner: Travis Hafner: Travis Hafner had 100 RBI’s this year.
G1SP: CC Sabathia CLE vs. Brandon Webb ARI
Winner: CC Sabathia: The pitchers are very close, but in Cleveland, Sabathia gets the edge.
G2SP: Fausto Carmona CLE vs. Livan Hernandez ARI
Winner: Fausto Carmona: Carmona had a 1.14 ERA in September.
G3SP: Jake Westbrook CLE vs. Doug Davis ARI
Winner: Jake Westbrook: Westbrook had a 4.14 ERA in September.
G4SP: Paul Byrd CLE vs. Micah Owings ARI
Winner: Micah Owings: Micah has a 4.30 ERA while Byrd has a 4.57 ERA and it’s in Arizona.
G5SP: CC Sabathia CLE vs. Brandon Webb ARI
Winner: Brandon Webb: The pitchers are very close, but in Arizona, Webb gets the edge.
G6SP: Jake Westbrook CLE vs. Doug Davis ARI
Winner: Jake Westbrook: It’s in Cleveland and they both have done pretty well this year, but Westbrook had a better September so he has more confidence.
G7SP: Fausto Carmona CLE vs. Livan Hernandez ARI
Winner: Fausto Carmona: Hernandez has an ERA of almost 5.00 while Carmona is in Cy Young talk.
Indians 14, D’Backs 2
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win NL MVP?
Matt Holliday – 62%
Jimmy Rollins – 15%
Carlos Beltran – 8%
Prince Fielder – 8%
Ryan Howard – 8%
All others – 0%
Come back next week for part 6 of the Doug Melvin Trade Analysis.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
End of Season Awards
This week I will give my end of the season awards (stats are through September 28th).
Rangers Awards:
Rangers MVP: Michael Young: .316 AVG, 9 HR, 94 RBI
Runner-up: Marlon Byrd
Rangers Cy Young: CJ Wilson: 2-1, 3.03 ERA, 63 SO, 12 SV
Runner-up: Kevin Millwood
Rangers Rookie of the Year: Jarrod Saltalamacchia: .266 AVG, 11 HR, 33 RBI
Runner-up: Luis Mendoza/Travis Metcalf
AL Awards:
AL MVP: A-ROD NYY: .312 AVG, 54 HR, 155 RBI
Runner-up: Vladimir Guerrero LAA
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett BOS: 20-7, 3.27 ERA, 194 K
Runner-up: CC Sabathia CLE
AL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year: Bobby Jenks CWS: 3-5, 2.77 ERA, 56 K, 40 SV
Runner-up: Jonathon Papelbon BOS
AL Rookie of the Year: Dustin Pedroia BOS: .317 AVG, 8 HR, 50 RBI
Runner-up: Jarrod Saltalamacchia TEX
AL Manager of the Year: Eric Wedge CLE, 95-65
Runner-up: Mike Scioscia LAA
NL Awards:
NL MVP: Ryan Howard PHI: .265 AVG, 45 HR, 132 RBI
Runner-up: Jimmy Rollins PHI
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy SD: 19-6, 2.36 ERA, 234 K
Runner-up: Brandon Webb ARI
NL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year: Jose Valverde ARI: 1-4, 2.66 ERA, 78 K, 47 SV
Runner-up: Francisco Cordero MIL
NL Rookie of the Year: Ryan Braun MIL: .323 AVG, 34 HR, 96 RBI
Runner-up: Chris Young ARI
NL Manager of the Year: Bob Melvin ARI, 90-70
Runner-up: Charlie Manuel PHI
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers traded for in 1999?
Francisco Cordero – 68%
Frank Catalanotto – 23%
Gabe Kapler – 9%
Come back next week for my playoff predictions.
Rangers Awards:
Rangers MVP: Michael Young: .316 AVG, 9 HR, 94 RBI
Runner-up: Marlon Byrd
Rangers Cy Young: CJ Wilson: 2-1, 3.03 ERA, 63 SO, 12 SV
Runner-up: Kevin Millwood
Rangers Rookie of the Year: Jarrod Saltalamacchia: .266 AVG, 11 HR, 33 RBI
Runner-up: Luis Mendoza/Travis Metcalf
AL Awards:
AL MVP: A-ROD NYY: .312 AVG, 54 HR, 155 RBI
Runner-up: Vladimir Guerrero LAA
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett BOS: 20-7, 3.27 ERA, 194 K
Runner-up: CC Sabathia CLE
AL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year: Bobby Jenks CWS: 3-5, 2.77 ERA, 56 K, 40 SV
Runner-up: Jonathon Papelbon BOS
AL Rookie of the Year: Dustin Pedroia BOS: .317 AVG, 8 HR, 50 RBI
Runner-up: Jarrod Saltalamacchia TEX
AL Manager of the Year: Eric Wedge CLE, 95-65
Runner-up: Mike Scioscia LAA
NL Awards:
NL MVP: Ryan Howard PHI: .265 AVG, 45 HR, 132 RBI
Runner-up: Jimmy Rollins PHI
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy SD: 19-6, 2.36 ERA, 234 K
Runner-up: Brandon Webb ARI
NL Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year: Jose Valverde ARI: 1-4, 2.66 ERA, 78 K, 47 SV
Runner-up: Francisco Cordero MIL
NL Rookie of the Year: Ryan Braun MIL: .323 AVG, 34 HR, 96 RBI
Runner-up: Chris Young ARI
NL Manager of the Year: Bob Melvin ARI, 90-70
Runner-up: Charlie Manuel PHI
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think is the best player the Rangers traded for in 1999?
Francisco Cordero – 68%
Frank Catalanotto – 23%
Gabe Kapler – 9%
Come back next week for my playoff predictions.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Doug Melvin Trade Analysis Part 5
This is part 5 of an analysis of the trades Doug Melvin made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover 1999 and the beginning of 2000. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
29. 8/27/99 - The Seattle Mariners traded Jeff Fassero to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later. The Texas Rangers sent Adrian Myers (minors) (September 22, 1999) to the Seattle Mariners to complete the trade.
Tie – Fassero only pitched 17 innings for the Rangers and Myers never made it to the majors. Fassero was part of the Rangers’ stretch run to the playoffs that year but was not very effective, posting a 5.71 ERA and going 1-0.
Record: 10-7-12
30. 11/2/99 - The Detroit Tigers traded Frank Catalanotto, Francisco Cordero, Bill Haselman, Gabe Kapler, Justin Thompson, and Alan Webb (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Juan Gonzalez, Danny Patterson, and Gregg Zaun.
Win – This is a tough trade to analyze because the Rangers were a regular playoff team with Juan and have been a bad team ever since this trade. But when you look at the performance of the players the Rangers got vs. the ones they gave up, it’s a win for the Rangers. The Rangers got two good years out of Cat (.291 in 2000 and .330 in 2001) and many good years out of CoCo, including two All-Star years. We got three good years of back-up from Haselman, and a couple of decent years from Kapler (he hit .302 in 2000 and had 17 homers in 2001). Justin Thompson didn’t make it back to the majors for years due to injuries and finally appeared for the Rangers in 2005 as a reliever for two games. Juan Gonzalez went just .289 with 22 HR and 67 RBI in his one year in Detroit. He then had a good year for Cleveland in 2001 (.325, 35, 140) before coming back to Texas. At that point, we not only had all of the players we got from Detroit but had Juan back too. Patterson had some solid years as a reliever for Detroit for 5 seasons. Gregg Zaun didn’t even play one game for the Tigers.
Record: 11-7-12
31. 12/13/99 - The New York Yankees traded Chad Curtis to the Texas Rangers for Brandon Knight and Sam Marsonek.
Win – Knight only had 19 innings pitched and Marsonek only had 1 inning pitched, while Curtis had one decent year for the Rangers (.272 with 8 homers and 48 RBI).
Record: 12-7-12
32. 3/16/00 - As part of a 3-team trade: The Texas Rangers sent Lee Stevens to the Montreal Expos. The Montreal Expos sent Brad Fullmer to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Toronto Blue Jays sent David Segui and cash to the Texas Rangers.
Tie – Lee Stevens batted .265 and .245 in his two years there. He had 22 home runs and 75 RBI in 2000 and 25 homers and 95 RBI in 2001. David Segui played very well for the Rangers in 93 games in 2000 before being traded. He batted .336 with 11 homers and 57 RBI.
Record: 12-7-13
33. 6/9/00 - The Florida Marlins traded Brant Brown to the Texas Rangers for Chuck Smith.
Loss – Brant Brown never played for the Rangers and Chuck Smith was only in the majors two years. He went 11-11 for the Marlins in 34 games, posting a 3.84 ERA.
Record: 12-8-13
34. 6/9/00 - The Chicago Cubs traded Dave Martinez to the Texas Rangers for Brant Brown.
Tie – Dave Martinez never played for the Rangers and Brant Brown had less than 100 at-bats for the Cubs.
Record: 12-8-14
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win the World Series?
Red Sox – 33%
Yankees – 24%
Angels – 14%
Mets – 14%
Cubs – 5%
Brewers – 5%
Indians – 5%
Come back next week for my end-of-the-season awards.
29. 8/27/99 - The Seattle Mariners traded Jeff Fassero to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later. The Texas Rangers sent Adrian Myers (minors) (September 22, 1999) to the Seattle Mariners to complete the trade.
Tie – Fassero only pitched 17 innings for the Rangers and Myers never made it to the majors. Fassero was part of the Rangers’ stretch run to the playoffs that year but was not very effective, posting a 5.71 ERA and going 1-0.
Record: 10-7-12
30. 11/2/99 - The Detroit Tigers traded Frank Catalanotto, Francisco Cordero, Bill Haselman, Gabe Kapler, Justin Thompson, and Alan Webb (minors) to the Texas Rangers for Juan Gonzalez, Danny Patterson, and Gregg Zaun.
Win – This is a tough trade to analyze because the Rangers were a regular playoff team with Juan and have been a bad team ever since this trade. But when you look at the performance of the players the Rangers got vs. the ones they gave up, it’s a win for the Rangers. The Rangers got two good years out of Cat (.291 in 2000 and .330 in 2001) and many good years out of CoCo, including two All-Star years. We got three good years of back-up from Haselman, and a couple of decent years from Kapler (he hit .302 in 2000 and had 17 homers in 2001). Justin Thompson didn’t make it back to the majors for years due to injuries and finally appeared for the Rangers in 2005 as a reliever for two games. Juan Gonzalez went just .289 with 22 HR and 67 RBI in his one year in Detroit. He then had a good year for Cleveland in 2001 (.325, 35, 140) before coming back to Texas. At that point, we not only had all of the players we got from Detroit but had Juan back too. Patterson had some solid years as a reliever for Detroit for 5 seasons. Gregg Zaun didn’t even play one game for the Tigers.
Record: 11-7-12
31. 12/13/99 - The New York Yankees traded Chad Curtis to the Texas Rangers for Brandon Knight and Sam Marsonek.
Win – Knight only had 19 innings pitched and Marsonek only had 1 inning pitched, while Curtis had one decent year for the Rangers (.272 with 8 homers and 48 RBI).
Record: 12-7-12
32. 3/16/00 - As part of a 3-team trade: The Texas Rangers sent Lee Stevens to the Montreal Expos. The Montreal Expos sent Brad Fullmer to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Toronto Blue Jays sent David Segui and cash to the Texas Rangers.
Tie – Lee Stevens batted .265 and .245 in his two years there. He had 22 home runs and 75 RBI in 2000 and 25 homers and 95 RBI in 2001. David Segui played very well for the Rangers in 93 games in 2000 before being traded. He batted .336 with 11 homers and 57 RBI.
Record: 12-7-13
33. 6/9/00 - The Florida Marlins traded Brant Brown to the Texas Rangers for Chuck Smith.
Loss – Brant Brown never played for the Rangers and Chuck Smith was only in the majors two years. He went 11-11 for the Marlins in 34 games, posting a 3.84 ERA.
Record: 12-8-13
34. 6/9/00 - The Chicago Cubs traded Dave Martinez to the Texas Rangers for Brant Brown.
Tie – Dave Martinez never played for the Rangers and Brant Brown had less than 100 at-bats for the Cubs.
Record: 12-8-14
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think will win the World Series?
Red Sox – 33%
Yankees – 24%
Angels – 14%
Mets – 14%
Cubs – 5%
Brewers – 5%
Indians – 5%
Come back next week for my end-of-the-season awards.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Pennant Race Analysis
This week I will break down the pennant races and give my predictions for the postseason.
Below are my predictions for the final standings in each division.
AL East
1. Red Sox – Their pitching will be key in holding the Yankees back. (My preseason prediction: Yankees)
2. Yankees – The Yankees have a good 3 and a half game lead in the Wild Card over the Tigers. (Preseason prediction: Red Sox)
3. Blue Jays (Preseason: Orioles)
4. Orioles (Preseason: Blue Jays)
5. Devil Rays (Preseason: Devil Rays)
Al Central
1. Indians – The Indians are 5 and a half games ahead of the Tigers and are 7-3 in their last 10. (My preseason prediction: Tigers)
2. Tigers (Preseason: Indians)
3. Twins (Preseason: White Sox)
4. White Sox (Preseason: Twins)
5. Royals (Preseason: Royals)
AL West
1. Angels – They’re seven and a half games up on the Mariners who are really falling. (My preseason prediction: Angels)
2. Mariners (Preseason: Rangers)
3. Rangers (Preseason: Athletics)
4. Athletics (Preseason: Mariners)
NL East
1. Mets - They have a five and a half game lead on the Phillies and are playing really well, going 7-3 in their last 10. (My preseason prediction: Mets)
2. Phillies – They have an incredibly easy schedule from now on and are only 1.5 games back from the wild card. Also, they are 6-4 in their last 10, while the Padres are 4-6. (Preseason: Phillies)
3. Braves (Preseason: Marlins)
4. Marlins (Preseason: Braves)
5. Nationals (Preseason: Nationals)
NL Central
1. Brewers – Both the Brewers and Cubs have very easy schedules, but at just 1 and a half games behind, I think the Brewers have better pitching, which should move them ahead. (My preseason prediction: Reds)
2. Cubs (Preseason: Cardinals)
3. Reds (Preseason: Cubs)
4. Pirates (Preseason: Brewers)
5. Cardinals (Preseason: Astros)
6. Astros (Preseason: Pirates)
NL West
1. Diamondbacks – The D’Backs are a good 3 games ahead of the Padres, who have struggled lately. (My preseason prediction: Dodgers)
2. Padres (Preseason: Padres)
3. Rockies (Preseason: Rockies)
4. Dodgers (Preseason: Diamondbacks)
5. Giants (Preseason: Giants)
AL Playoffs:
Divisional Series:
Red Sox over Angels in 4 – The Red Sox have very good pitching which I think will carry them over the Angels
Indians over Yankees in 5 – The Indians have an all-around better team and have proven to be great in the clutch this year, leading baseball with 9 walk-off wins.
AL Championship Series:
Red Sox over Indians in 6 – I think Josh Beckett will be huge in this series and be the decider of the series.
NL Playoffs:
Divisional Series:
Mets over Brewers in 3 – The Mets have a lot of postseason experience, which I think will put them past the Brewers.
Diamondbacks over Phillies in 4 – Pitching wins championships, and will win the D’Backs this series.
NL Championship Series:
Diamondbacks over Mets in 7 – I think that the D’Backs’ incredible pitching will win them the NL pennant.
World Series:
Red Sox over Diamondbacks in 7 – The D’Backs have great pitching, but their offense won’t be enough to keep up with the Red Sox.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think was the best player the Rangers acquired in 1998?
Royce Clayton – 45%
Todd Zeile – 27%
Esteban Loaiza – 18%
Todd Stottlemyre – 9%
Tim Crabtree – 0%
Come back next week for part 5 of the Doug Melvin trade analysis series.
Below are my predictions for the final standings in each division.
AL East
1. Red Sox – Their pitching will be key in holding the Yankees back. (My preseason prediction: Yankees)
2. Yankees – The Yankees have a good 3 and a half game lead in the Wild Card over the Tigers. (Preseason prediction: Red Sox)
3. Blue Jays (Preseason: Orioles)
4. Orioles (Preseason: Blue Jays)
5. Devil Rays (Preseason: Devil Rays)
Al Central
1. Indians – The Indians are 5 and a half games ahead of the Tigers and are 7-3 in their last 10. (My preseason prediction: Tigers)
2. Tigers (Preseason: Indians)
3. Twins (Preseason: White Sox)
4. White Sox (Preseason: Twins)
5. Royals (Preseason: Royals)
AL West
1. Angels – They’re seven and a half games up on the Mariners who are really falling. (My preseason prediction: Angels)
2. Mariners (Preseason: Rangers)
3. Rangers (Preseason: Athletics)
4. Athletics (Preseason: Mariners)
NL East
1. Mets - They have a five and a half game lead on the Phillies and are playing really well, going 7-3 in their last 10. (My preseason prediction: Mets)
2. Phillies – They have an incredibly easy schedule from now on and are only 1.5 games back from the wild card. Also, they are 6-4 in their last 10, while the Padres are 4-6. (Preseason: Phillies)
3. Braves (Preseason: Marlins)
4. Marlins (Preseason: Braves)
5. Nationals (Preseason: Nationals)
NL Central
1. Brewers – Both the Brewers and Cubs have very easy schedules, but at just 1 and a half games behind, I think the Brewers have better pitching, which should move them ahead. (My preseason prediction: Reds)
2. Cubs (Preseason: Cardinals)
3. Reds (Preseason: Cubs)
4. Pirates (Preseason: Brewers)
5. Cardinals (Preseason: Astros)
6. Astros (Preseason: Pirates)
NL West
1. Diamondbacks – The D’Backs are a good 3 games ahead of the Padres, who have struggled lately. (My preseason prediction: Dodgers)
2. Padres (Preseason: Padres)
3. Rockies (Preseason: Rockies)
4. Dodgers (Preseason: Diamondbacks)
5. Giants (Preseason: Giants)
AL Playoffs:
Divisional Series:
Red Sox over Angels in 4 – The Red Sox have very good pitching which I think will carry them over the Angels
Indians over Yankees in 5 – The Indians have an all-around better team and have proven to be great in the clutch this year, leading baseball with 9 walk-off wins.
AL Championship Series:
Red Sox over Indians in 6 – I think Josh Beckett will be huge in this series and be the decider of the series.
NL Playoffs:
Divisional Series:
Mets over Brewers in 3 – The Mets have a lot of postseason experience, which I think will put them past the Brewers.
Diamondbacks over Phillies in 4 – Pitching wins championships, and will win the D’Backs this series.
NL Championship Series:
Diamondbacks over Mets in 7 – I think that the D’Backs’ incredible pitching will win them the NL pennant.
World Series:
Red Sox over Diamondbacks in 7 – The D’Backs have great pitching, but their offense won’t be enough to keep up with the Red Sox.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think was the best player the Rangers acquired in 1998?
Royce Clayton – 45%
Todd Zeile – 27%
Esteban Loaiza – 18%
Todd Stottlemyre – 9%
Tim Crabtree – 0%
Come back next week for part 5 of the Doug Melvin trade analysis series.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Doug Melvin Trade Analysis Part 4
This is part 4 of an analysis of the trades Doug Melvin made while he was Rangers GM. This week I will cover 1998. Each trade will be scored a win, loss, or tie. The score is based on how each player contributed to the Rangers at the major league level.
25. 3/14/98 The Texas Rangers traded Kevin Brown to the Toronto Blue Jays for Tim Crabtree.
Win – Tim Crabtree gave us two good relief year, with ERA’s of 3.59 and 3.46 in ’98 and ’99 before his awful years of ’00 and ’01. Kevin Brown (the catcher) only got to play in 85 career games.
Record: 8-7-10
26. 7/17/98 The Pittsburgh Pirates traded Esteban Loaiza to the Texas Rangers for Warren Morris and Todd Van Poppel.
Tie – None of the players did well, as Warren Morris never played very well, Esteban Loaiza never had an ERA below 5.00 as a Ranger, and Todd Van Poppel, in his only year with Pittsburgh, had an ERA of 5.36.
Record: 8-7-11
27. 7/31/98 The Florida Marlins traded Todd Zeile to the Texas Rangers for Daniel DeYoung (minors) and Jose Santo (minors).
Win – Todd Zeile really helped us make the playoffs in ’98 and then hit .293 in ’99. Neither DeYoung or Santo even made the majors.
Record: 9-7-11
28. 7/31/98 The St. Louis Cardinals traded Royce Clayton and Todd Stottlemyre to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later, Darren Oliver, and Fernando Tatis. The Texas Rangers sent Mark Little (August 9, 1998) to the St. Louis Cardinals to complete the trade.
Win – Darren Oliver only played with the Cardinals for one and a half years, Tatis only started one year and hit .298 that year, and Mark Little only got 12 at-bats. Both Clayton, who hit .288 that year, and Stottlemyre, who had a 5-4 record that year, were huge in the Rangers’ pennant race. Also, Royce Clayton played for the Rangers for 2 and a half years.
Record: 10-7-11
I went to two baseball games this week. On Wednesday, my dad and I went to the Rangers/Royals game. It was Autograph Wednesday so I got a lot of autographs. They had Rusty Greer, Jim Norris, Frank Catalanotto, Ramon Vazquez, and David Murphy located around the park signing autographs and I got all of them. It was a great game, with the Rangers winning 3-2. Padilla pitched great and got the win and Benoit got the save. We had great seats, 11 rows behind home plate, so it was a lot of fun. On Thursday night, I went to the RoughRiders playoff game with my dad and my two-year-old little sister Kate. They lost, but we had a lot of fun and I got a lot of autographs for Kate. She really likes going to the games because she likes watching Deuce, the mascot. Eleanor Czajka from the Newberg Report and Jon Daniels were also there and I got to talk with them.
Last night, I was on the Rangers post game show on the radio (KRLD). Mike Ogulnick interviewed me about my blog. It was a lot of fun and I would like to thank Mike for having me on. I got to stay up until midnight to do the interview.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think should be the NL MVP?
Prince Fielder – 38%
Matt Holliday – 25 %
Albert Pujols – 13%
Ryan Braun – 6%
Ken Griffey – 6%
Ryan Howard – 6%
Other – 6%
Miguel Cabrera – 0%
Adam Dunn – 0%
Come back next week for an analysis of the pennant races.
25. 3/14/98 The Texas Rangers traded Kevin Brown to the Toronto Blue Jays for Tim Crabtree.
Win – Tim Crabtree gave us two good relief year, with ERA’s of 3.59 and 3.46 in ’98 and ’99 before his awful years of ’00 and ’01. Kevin Brown (the catcher) only got to play in 85 career games.
Record: 8-7-10
26. 7/17/98 The Pittsburgh Pirates traded Esteban Loaiza to the Texas Rangers for Warren Morris and Todd Van Poppel.
Tie – None of the players did well, as Warren Morris never played very well, Esteban Loaiza never had an ERA below 5.00 as a Ranger, and Todd Van Poppel, in his only year with Pittsburgh, had an ERA of 5.36.
Record: 8-7-11
27. 7/31/98 The Florida Marlins traded Todd Zeile to the Texas Rangers for Daniel DeYoung (minors) and Jose Santo (minors).
Win – Todd Zeile really helped us make the playoffs in ’98 and then hit .293 in ’99. Neither DeYoung or Santo even made the majors.
Record: 9-7-11
28. 7/31/98 The St. Louis Cardinals traded Royce Clayton and Todd Stottlemyre to the Texas Rangers for a player to be named later, Darren Oliver, and Fernando Tatis. The Texas Rangers sent Mark Little (August 9, 1998) to the St. Louis Cardinals to complete the trade.
Win – Darren Oliver only played with the Cardinals for one and a half years, Tatis only started one year and hit .298 that year, and Mark Little only got 12 at-bats. Both Clayton, who hit .288 that year, and Stottlemyre, who had a 5-4 record that year, were huge in the Rangers’ pennant race. Also, Royce Clayton played for the Rangers for 2 and a half years.
Record: 10-7-11
I went to two baseball games this week. On Wednesday, my dad and I went to the Rangers/Royals game. It was Autograph Wednesday so I got a lot of autographs. They had Rusty Greer, Jim Norris, Frank Catalanotto, Ramon Vazquez, and David Murphy located around the park signing autographs and I got all of them. It was a great game, with the Rangers winning 3-2. Padilla pitched great and got the win and Benoit got the save. We had great seats, 11 rows behind home plate, so it was a lot of fun. On Thursday night, I went to the RoughRiders playoff game with my dad and my two-year-old little sister Kate. They lost, but we had a lot of fun and I got a lot of autographs for Kate. She really likes going to the games because she likes watching Deuce, the mascot. Eleanor Czajka from the Newberg Report and Jon Daniels were also there and I got to talk with them.
Last night, I was on the Rangers post game show on the radio (KRLD). Mike Ogulnick interviewed me about my blog. It was a lot of fun and I would like to thank Mike for having me on. I got to stay up until midnight to do the interview.
Results of last week’s poll:
Who do you think should be the NL MVP?
Prince Fielder – 38%
Matt Holliday – 25 %
Albert Pujols – 13%
Ryan Braun – 6%
Ken Griffey – 6%
Ryan Howard – 6%
Other – 6%
Miguel Cabrera – 0%
Adam Dunn – 0%
Come back next week for an analysis of the pennant races.
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