Thursday, May 16 Updated: May 21, 3:13 PM ET Beyond the box score, D-Backs' DL and more By Dave Campbell Special to ESPN.com |
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The Week That Was
That's what makes him the consummate leadoff hitter. He wears pitchers out, watching lots of pitches so his teammates can see them. He also hit some ugly foul balls, where the pitch would fool him and he'd barely take a swing but just put his bat on the ball and foul it off. I've watched Rickey do that intentionally over the years. When he gets a pitch he can't hit, he knows how to foul it off so he can get a pitch he can hit. Thirty-seven pitches. If all nine batters saw that many in a single game, the opponent's pitch count would be an astronomical 333. It was an absolutely remarkable performance by a guy who people keep trying to write off.
D-Backs' DL Could Fund Devil Rays Here's the list of the D-Backs' wealthy wounded: Matt Williams ($9.5M), Jay Bell ($8M), Todd Stottlemyre ($8M), Matt Mantei ($4.3M), Armando Reynoso ($4.1M), Erubiel Durazo ($375,000) and David Dellucci ($775,000). The D-Backs' combined DL salaries also come close to the other two MLB teams that have a total payroll below $40 million: Expos ($38.6M) and A's ($39.6M). The Yankees top the chart at $125.9 million.
Buehrle and Ritchie and Not Much More Pitchie Buehrle (3.30 ERA, 7-2) and Ritchie (3.32, 3-4) have pitched well. But compare their ERAs with the rest of the White Sox starters: Jon Garland (5.95), Dan Wright (6.59) and Jon Rauch (9.82). Ritchie was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates for Josh Fogg, Kip Wells and Sean Lowe. Fogg (5-1, 2.47) and Wells (5-2, 4.33) are a collective 10-3, so they have more than 50 percent of the Pirates' 19 wins. While Ritchie has pitched well for the White Sox, this has been a tremendous trade for the Pirates because they have two starters making close to the minimum salary who are pitching great.
Pirates Closing the Deal Contrast that with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. During their 15-game losing streak, the Devil Rays lost three straight games in which they had the lead with two outs in the ninth. That's especially tough for a young team.
Concern in Oakland Their Big Three starters -- Tim Hudson (3-5, 3.92), Mark Mulder (2-2, 6.35) and Barry Zito (4-3, 4.34) -- have been spotty. Mulder isn't completely healthy, and David Justice is on the disabled list. And look at the list of A's hitters who have been struggling during the slump: third baseman Eric Chavez (.252), catcher Ramon Hernandez (.210), center fielder Terrence Long (.236) and, after a fast start, first baseman Carlos Pena (.222). So a number of components are not meshing right now. It's true that Oakland has a better record than at this time last year. But it looks like Seattle (27-12) is positioned to win the AL West again -- and unlike last year, both the Red Sox and Yankees are playing well. So the A's need to kick it into gear if they want to make a run at the postseason via the wild card.
Will the Real Angels Please Stand Up Included in those stats are a 21-2 thrashing of the Indians and a 19-0 blowout over the White Sox. And Wednesday night, Anaheim beat the Tigers 10-1.
On The Horizon The Angels want to keep on rolling. They go five deep in their rotation, which is something few MLB teams can say. The Angels probably don't have a legitimate No. 1 starter, but they have five guys with solid experience: Kevin Appier, Aaron Sele, Ramon Ortiz, Jarrod Washburn and Scott Schoeneweis. Each is capable of delivering a quality start each time he takes the mound. If their offense continues to click, they'll be in good shape. The White Sox, meanwhile, need to get some pitching beyond Buehrle and Ritchie (see item above). Beyond those two, no starter has done the job.
NL: Marlins-Giants (three-game series in San Francisco begins Friday) The Marlins are trying to make a statement. We knew they had tremendous young arms in Josh Beckett, Brad Penny, A.J. Burnett and Ryan Dempster. But don't overlook Florida's offense. Mike Lowell (.363-7-30) and Cliff Floyd (.323-13-29) have been swinging the bats well. Floyd trade rumors have been swirling this season, but if he's going to be traded it won't be until after the All-Star break. With the wild card giving teams a better shot at the postseason, GMs are more reluctant to deal top players (even soon-to-be free agents) and thus alienate fans. But I don't think Floyd will be traded. The Giants just want to keep on trucking. Barry Bonds started strong but hasn't gotten a lot of pitches lately (no surprise there). Defensively, the Giants are better this year with Reggie Sanders in right field, Tsuyoshi Shinjo in center and David Bell at third.
If I Were The Skipper
Campbell's Call
What Happened
Ballpark Focus: Pac Bell Park, San Francisco Anywhere from the press box down the right field line along the loge or upper deck, there's a spectacular view of San Francisco Bay -- you can see the Bay Bridge and even the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. The ambience is fantastic.
Many thought Pac Bell would be a home-run haven, but the park yielded the second-fewest home runs in the majors last season (Detroit's Comerica Park yielded the fewest). In 81 games at Pac Bell, visiting teams hit 57 home runs. Meanwhile, Barry Bonds hit 37 of his record-setting 73 homers at home. There are no cheap dingers at Pac Bell, which makes what Bonds did last year even more impressive. Editor's Note: All statistics are through Wednesday's games. Dave Campbell, who was an infielder for eight seasons in the major leagues (1967-74), works as an analyst for Baseball Tonight and ESPN Radio. |
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