By Richard Schortemeyer III
As I’ve said numerous times before, there have been some great stories, this season, in MLB.
There’s the resurrection of former 1st pick and current Texas Rangers OF Josh Hamilton. There’s Arizona Diamondbacks SP Doug Davis and Boston Red Sox SP Jon Lester, pitchers who have won the battle against cancer and are in the midst of trying to help their teams win playoff spots.
Then, there’s the St. Louis Cardinals and Minnesota Twins, two teams who lost key players in the off-season but have somehow managed to be within reach of MLB’s second season.
But, many can argue that the best story is …
… the way Joe Maddon has managed, and turned around, a young Tampa Rays team from annual baseball humility to an AL East title contender. From key divisional series wins (including two sweeps of the Boston Red Sox) to key decisions regarding star players, Maddon has helped bring long-awaited excitement and revenue to the organization and its fans.
With Boston being Manny-less and having pitching issues, and the Yankees having all-around struggles, this could be the year we see a new face on top of the AL East Mountain. Much thanks to ‘Should-Be AL Coach of the Year’, Joe Maddon.
In this edition of “On the Record,” we’ll talk about a Twin who’s helping make up for what was lost in the off-season, a veteran catcher who’s starting to provide an all-around game in the desert, and a crafty veteran hurler who’s still in the same state but in a much better position after this week.
Question #1
What OF is starting to make up for what’s been missed since the start of ‘08?
For several years, Torii Hunter was Minnesota’s best all-around position player. A five-tool player, Hunter won multiple Gold Gloves and made many All-Star appearances while being one of Minnesota’s main offensive sources. This past off-season, after playing his first 11 seasons as a Twin, Hunter wanted to go to a team that was a more serious playoff contender, so he moved a time zone or two and went to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
After the loss of Hunter and ace Johan Santana, Minnesota was expected to falter in the AL Central in 2008. But like the Oakland A’s of the past few years, the Twins were able to restock with young players and, surprisingly, are still in the playoff hunt. One of the biggest reasons has been the play of their young outfield trio, including the answer to Question #1, Denard Span.
A former first-round pick of the Twins, Span has finally been promoted to the Big Leagues and is taking full advantage of the opportunity. He has shown the makings of being the team’s long-term option in the leadoff role. This past month has seen Span bat over .300, with a couple of HRs, double-digit RBIs, a couple of triples, several SBs, and more than 20 runs scored.
Span’s spot in the team’s lineup is a prime spot. He has RBI opportunities, with speedsters OF Carlos Gomez and IF Nick Punto at the bottom of the lineup. Add to that the run potential while being followed by three players hitting over .300 (2B Alexi Casilla, C Joe Mauer, 1B Justin Morneau).
If your offense needs help in a few different categories, Span looks like one of the best available. I would definitely ride this impressive-looking rookie.
Question #2
What veteran backstop is having a ‘desert hot’ season?
No doubt, one of the top places any catcher would love to be right now is in Arizona. Arguably, the biggest reason the Diamondbacks are in playoff contention is their pitching staff, which includes Cy Young arms Brandon Webb, Dan Haren, and future Hall of Famer Randy Johnson.
These pitchers are great, but some of the credit should go the pitcher’s battery-mate, which, for the last couple of seasons, has been Chris Snyder.
Known more for his defense, Snyder has started to become very ‘offensive’ the last couple of seasons. After setting career-highs in HRs (13) and RBIs (47) in 2007, Snyder will set new career-highs in both categories by this season’s end. A big reason for that has been his play the last month, which has seen him bat around .280, with close to double-digit HRs and over 20 RBIs.
A stat to definitely not overlook is his plate discipline, as he’s already set a new career-high in BBs, with almost 20 of them coming in the last month. That helps, especially if you’re in a league with OBP or OPS.
No, Snyder really isn’t in a prime spot in the lineup, but if your team needs some pop, and a quality OBP, or your catcher spot is dragging your team down, he’s arguably the best backstop available.
Question #3
What Cy Young pitcher and future Hall of Famer has some new life in California?
One of the biggest reasons for the NL East dominance of the Atlanta Braves in the ’90s, and into the early 21st Century, was Atlanta’s version of the Ultimate Trio, which included John Smoltz, Tom Glavine, and my latest answer, Greg Maddux.
Maddux stood out among the three with his numerous Cy Young awards and countless quality key game performances. After 11 Hall of Fame worthy seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Maddux moved on and really hasn’t been the same pitcher since. He’s had one losing season and three 4.00+ ERA seasons since ‘04, neither of which he had while a Brave.
Maddux has still shown, though, that he still has some gas left in his tank. He finished 2007 with a 14-11 record. This season started out slowly for him, and he’s currently a few games under .500, but you can attribute some of that to the extremely poor offensive production that backed him up in San Diego. He has eight no decision starts this year in which he pitched into the 6th inning while giving up two earned runs or less. He has 17 quality starts in 26 appearances - not great, but much better than his 6-9 record would lead you to believe.
With his pitching days soon coming to a close, Maddux’s future as a Padre didn’t look bright. The immediate future brightened a bit this past week, however, with his relocation to an intra-state team, the LA Dodgers. He joins a Dodgers team that has gotten a huge Manny boost on offense and a pitching staff that leads the NL in ERA.
In deciding whether to take a flyer on this veteran, a look at the rest of the schedule should make your choice a lot easier. Once the Dodgers get past this weekend’s series at the struggling Philadelphia Phillies, they will spend the rest of the season playing the weak NL West along with a series each at Washington and Pittsburgh.
Nothing on the schedule should be considered a threat to Mr. Maddux. Therefore, if you need to solidify the back of your rotation, don’t hesitate to pick up this future HOF hurler.
Check back next week to see who’s “On the Record.”
Until next time, Adios all.