Bang up job, Chuck Fletcher

As I stated many a time, today was the big free agency MANIA in the NHL. Free agency was opened up at noon, and every team went on a feeding frenzy, adding as many new faces as possible, getting ready for the Stanley Cup. It's an exciting time to be a hockey fan. Without further ado, here is a screen cap of today's signings (part of them, just so as to include Minnesota)

(Click to aggrandize)

So, the Wild, with all that hullaballoo, re-signed Josh Harding. Crazy. Fletcher must have really taxed that signature signing hand today. With that one contract. With a mediocre player who was already here. Yay, Devin Setoguchi!

BREAKING: Twins trade Carlos Gomez for JJ Hardy

According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Twins have acquired JJ Hardy for Carlos Gomez. The move signals several things for the Twins (and the Brewers, who were trying to off load Hardy after the emergence of Alcides Escobar). First: They thought the potential Gomez possesses was equal to their need at short. Second, this likely means the team will keep Delmon Young who began to emerge late last season, AND he will be in the every day lineup. Third, this means Orlando Cabrera will not be back in Minnesota next year.
Hardy struggled last season, but if he returns anywhere close to form, the middle of the infield is going to be much better, and the Twins overall lineup will be stronger. This could be a refreshing change of pace for Hardy, playing in a lineup where he won't be asked to be among the top hitters.
As for Gomez, not only will he get a chance to play more frequently, but he will be mentored by Mike Cameron. Cameron is almost exactly like Gomez, coming into the league as an excellent defender who had offensive tools yet to be realized. I think in all of this, Carlos Gomez is the big winner.
Bill Smith also demonstrated that he is comitted to building HIS team. If you asked Ron Gardenhire, I'm sure he would have preferred to keep Gomez over Hardy, but Hardy's skill set is just what the Twins need, if they are realized. He offers a better bat late in the order, as well as veteran experience. Meanwhile, Denard Span, a natural center fielder, will no longer have to worry about playing left and Young can rest easy in left field. Perhaps he will put together a complete season, not having to worry about outside pressure.
So, so long, Chuck. You have been a fun player to watch, and I'm sure Brewers fans will enjoy your hijinks in Milwaukee. The fact is, however, we needed a short stop, and you needed a different opportunity.

Things you can't appreciate until you see them in person

Carlos Gomez is frickin' HUGE! You can't really appreciate it on TV because he is a lanky speedster, but he IS 6'4". What's listed in the book is actually true! For various reasons, I had never seen the man live and in person, and I have to say, I've fallen in love all over again. He started off explosively in a Twins uniform, then I sort of fell out of love because of his awful play. But man, seeing him in person, I can see what there is to love. He is a physical specimen of the same mold as Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer. Watch out when Gomez gets his man muscles.
Until then, maybe we should put him in Rochester? (By the way, that's him next to Alexi Casilla, for camparison. Half a foot taller)

Separated at birth

On the left is NHL goal tender Ray Emery. That's why it says "Ray Emery" at the bottom of the picture. On the right is Minnesota Twin Carlos Gomez. Emery is probably smiling in this picture because he just scored some coke. Chuck has too moods: happy and the one you see right there, recently struck out.
The resemblence, in my mind, is uncanny.

Chucky sees another ghost!

[In Arlington after the game, Carlos Gomes is watching TV. The commercials come on...]





Carlos Gomez: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA GHOST! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Frankie and Chucky see a ghost

[At the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee....]

Carlos Gomez: I'm a little scared, staying in this hotel room all by myself. Maybe I'll listen to the Wiggles on my iPod! (puts ear plugs in ears)

CG - GAAAAAA!!!! Voices!!!!!!! (throws iPod to the ground)

CG - The sheer terror has made me all sweaty! I need a shower! (Showers while singing the Alphabet Song) A B C A R L O S! Now I know my ABC's! (Hops out of the shower... The broken iPod is spouting off static)

CG - GAAAAA! My iPod is possessed! (runs out of the room half naked. Francisco Liriano is in the hall) Frankie! I think my room is haunted!

FL - Really? What happened, Chucky?

CG - Well, I put my head phones in, and then I heard voices, so I threw the iPod down really hard, and when I came out of the shower later, it wasn't working right!

FL - Oh wow, it really does sound like you have a ghost!

CG - Do you want to hang out with me? Maybe we can keep the ghost away.

FL - Sure! We'll be like Scooby Doo!

[Back in the room, Chucky and Franky play jacks for hours on end)

[There is a knock on the door]

Voice on the other side: What are you two doin' up so late?!

(Franky and Chucky look at each other, afraid)

[the door swings open]


Ron Gardenhire: I said, what are you two kids doing up so late?!

FL/CG: G-g-g-g-GHOST!!!!

In which I get worked up about Delmon Young again

While I was looking for the links today, looking for news on Delmon Young and why he was away from the team, and I came across this article. I understand that many people don't want to see Delmon Young in the outfield. I've made my peace with that. There are many reasonable arguments for it, namely Young is a less than quality outfield, and his power numbers are not where we want them to be for a corner outfielder. That being said, it's things like this that irritate me.
The facts the author, Andrew Scherber, spells out are a perfect example of looking at small sample sizes and going into a situation with a bias. Let's review:

Gomez critics cite his high- strikeout propensity, low batting average (.214) and on-base percentage (.274), and terrible approach at the plate as reasons why he should be sitting on the bench.

But Young's approach and plate discipline are equally as bad.

Well, not even close, actually. Young is hitting .60 higher, and last season, hit .30 higher. I'll give him the next point, about the walks. However in that same sentence, where he mentions that Young leads the team in strikeouts, he fails to mention that they have roughly the same strikeout rate.

Gomez has scored just as many runs as Young, too (10).

The only reason this would be a valid point is if both Gomez and Young got their hits, called "ghost runner!" and then ran back and hit. It's not Young's fault he hits ahead of Nick Punto, and Gomez is often a pinch runner, who gets put on base without getting hits, and gets to be on in front of RBI machines.

In 83 plate appearances, Young has only one home run and even more astonishing: only two extra base hits all year (that single home run included). There are dozens of players in the minor leagues who could hit .270 with little to no power, nothing special.

Again, I would rather have Young, hitting .277, in the lineup than the guy hitting .214. As for the 2 extra base hits, I would like to point out that it's fricking MAY. Barely halfway through, at that. And Delmon Young is a slow starter. He was last year, and ended up being solid down the stretch. Again, maybe Delmon would start getting better pitches to drive were he not batting ahead of Nick Punto.

Argue that you prefer speed and defense over offense, and I have no problem with you. We may differ philosophically, but it's not like either of us are going to change our preferences. Trying to railroad the superior offensive player by using bullsh*t statistical analysis is where I have the problem.

Links of the Day 6/17/08

And I'm back. Check out what I did yesterday. I figured BMR was due for some geopolitical conversation.

Former Purdue quarterback Drew Brees could be the greatest baseball playing Boilermaker since Archi Cianfrocco. The bar isn't high.

The ghost of hangovers past apparently haunts a hotel in Milwaukee. This spooked little Chuck Gomez more than most.

Holy crap!

Little Chuck Gomez is trying his darnedest to win me over. I have been poo-pooing him for some time, since he doesn't seem to want to learn the art of plate patience. Like a good ball player though, he didn't heed my advice and absolutely raked in tonight's game against the White Sox (which at press time was 13-0 Twins) hitting for the cycle, becoming the first Twin since Kirby Puckett to do so. Maybe there's some hope for the kid yet.Wait. 13-0? That could be the score of the Vikings-Bears game this fall! Only if there is an offensive explosion, of course.

A heart to heart conversation Friday night

At the Hennepin County Medical Center.....

Delmon Young: Carlos! Carlos are you OK?

Carlos Gomez: Yes. I get hit in the head five times in my career already. Is no problem.

DY: Oh. Well, while you're laid up, maybe you can watch some tape and find a solution for our.... problem.

CG: Yes. The curveball.

DY: I still say the solution is to get a longer bat.

CG: Yes. Is one solution. Maybe we swing harder?

DY: Not a bad idea Carlos! Get the air swirling around and maybe the ball will come to the bat. Sort of a Bernoulli effect.

CG: Yes. Bernoulli.

/Justin Morneau, listening from the doorway, steps in to the room.

JM: You know, guys, I too had a problem with the curveball not so long ago. But I overcame those issues.

CG: Yes. You very good hitter now. Use a longer bat? Swing harder? Always bunting?

DY: Did you threaten to chuck your bat at the pitcher if the catcher so much as flashed the sign for a curve?

JM: (paternal laugh) No fellas! The trick is to not swing at everything. Especially stuff you can't reach. Just swing at the pitches you know you can hit.

DY: That's crazy!

CG: Yes. Is crazy.

JM: Crazy enough to work.

DY: Naw. Just crazy.

(At Saturday night's game)

Umpire: Ball four! Take your base!

DY: But... but all I did was stand here! I can really just go to first because he threw 4 pitches I couldn't hit if I tried?

U: It's called a walk, son.

DY: It did work! I can't wait to tell Carlos!

Delmon Young would go on to score the go ahead run on Craig Monroe's homer. Carlos Gomez recovered from his head injury, while Justin Morneau just smiled the smile of a teacher watching his students excel.

Let's resolve some Twins issues

I'm here to address one of the three most apparent problems with the Twins team. The other two are, of course, the bullpen and the fact that Matt Tolbert uses the Cranberries as his walk-up music. But no, the problem to discuss today is Carlos Gomez.
The problem, you see, is exactly the one I envisioned many moons ago. He has absolutely no plate patience, and, believe it or not, it's proven to be problematic for the team. His .246 average so far this season, which is borne mostly of bunts, is actually higher than his average last year.
Looking at his splits this season, his problems are numerous. Gomez can't hit lefties, on the road, when not leading off an inning, with men on base, after the first three innings, in any at bat after his first, versus AL Central opponents, during night games, and when the pope is in transit to the United States. If you parse through that crap that I just wrote right then, you would probably infer that most of his hits come when he is bunting to lead of the game. True.
So, thats part of the problem. He can't hit except for those little lead off bunts. The scary thing is, he's not a particularly gifted bunter. Also scary? He's a lead off hitter with 2 walks through the Twins first 14 games. Thats 2 walks and 16 strikeouts. Thats really, really bad, leadoff hitter or not. Particularly when, as a leadoff man, part of your job is to work the pitcher a little bit so the guys behind you can see what he's got. Sure, it's nice that you can get on base once in a great while, but dude, take a pitch.
Minnesota has a history of encouraging players to hack away, starting with Kirby Puckett and continuing with Torii Hunter, A.J. Pierzynski and continuing to Gomez and Delmon Young today. It's for this reason that I suspect that when Michael Cuddyer comes back, it will be Denard Span sent back to Rochester, despite the fact that in 20 at bats he has more walks than both Gomez and Young, and and is batting near .300, but hey, Gomez won the job, right?
I'm beginning to suspect there is another reason why Ron Gardenhire insists on keeping people like Gomez or Nick Punto in the line up. You know, by now, what i'm talking about. .240ish hitter, no power, never walks, strikes out way too much. He's got a specific type of player in mind, it seems. Interesting.
That being said, send down Gomez for a while, teach him to hit, and keep Span, who actually seems to have things figured out.

Please, don't listen to the manager

All right, Delmon, Carlos, I know you'll read this, so I want to get this point across quick. Don't listen to Ron Gardenhire. If what Joe Christensen said is true, then Mr. Gardenhire has lost his mind.
First, Carlos, (can I call you Carlos? I'm 2 years older than you, so I'm going to call you Carlos. Or Chuck. I'm calling you Chuck)... First, Chuck, Gardy seems to like how hard you swing the bat and how aggressive you were. Well, Chuck, let's make one thing clear. You have one offensive skill right now. You are very fast. You are Jimmy John's delivery fast. So far, you aren't much for hitting. That means, you need to take pitches. You need to walk every once in a while. For a guy who stole 60 bases in a short, minor league season, just getting a walk would be almost as good as a double, what with your motor. What we don't need is some kid leading off and pulling his hamstring because he swung too hard when he shouldn't be swinging that hard in the first place because his only skill at this stage in his career is his speed. So. Don't be so aggressive.
As for you, Delmon, I think everyone can agree that you aggressively swinging a bat is a scary proposition. Other than that, it pains me to say that the Devil Rays organization may have had the right idea, telling you to be patient at the plate. Seriously, it's a good idea. Look at what happened to Torii Hunter when he figured that out. 90 million dollars is what friggin' happened. So, Delmon, swing away at good pitches. Under no circumstances, however, should you swing at balls out of the zone, pitches on a 3-0 count, pick off throws to first or umpires.
Now, Gardy, if you are reading this, shaking your head in disbelief, I want to remind you of something. You were a career .232 hitter with 4 home runs. You may not be the best example for young, good hitters. Actually, there is someone on the team that seems to fit your mold a little better. Why don't you go ruin him?