Tag: Joe Mauer (Page 4 of 5)

      American League All-Star voting–who is leading and who should be

      June 27, 2009 /

      It’s always funny how the voting for the Major League Baseball All-Star game shakes out, and it’s generally more of a popularity contest than anything. That, or the more familiar names like Derek Jeter, David Wright and Manny Ramirez always generate lots of attention. Well, since we’re about 75 games in, and the mid-summer classic is two and a half weeks away, I decided to look at the current vote leaders and make my own picks of who I think should be in there. First the American League — and next week, the National. Here we go….

      First base
      Leader: Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees
      Mike’s pick: Justin Morneau, Minnesota Twins. It’s kind of hard to argue with Teixeira’s numbers, short porch in right or not. He’s got 20 homers, 57 RBI, 20 doubles, and a .280 average (and in the field, zero errors). You can make a case for Carlos Pena (22 homers), but he’s batting .236. Morneau is batting .315, and has 16 homers (let’s say he’d have 20 if he played in Yankee Stadium), and more RBI than Teixeira (58). And he’s only made one error.

      Second base
      Leader: Ian Kinsler, Texas Rangers
      Mike’s pick: Aaron Hill, Toronto Blue Jays. I love a good comeback story, and this is it. Hill doesn’t have as many homers as Kinsler (17 to Kinsler’s 18), but he is hitting for a higher average (.306 to .268) with more RBI (52 to 49). Sure, Kinsler has 16 steals to 2 for Hill, but I’m sticking with my comeback story.

      Shortstop
      Leader: Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
      Mike’s pick: Jason Bartlett, Tampa Bay Rays. Jeter’s having a good season, but Bartlett is leading the American League in batting with a sick .363 average. Even after spending some time on the DL, Bartlett still has 7 homers, 35 RBI, 13 doubles, 3 triples and 15 steals…..pretty awesome numbers for a shortstop.

      Third base
      Leader: Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays
      Mike’s pick: Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays. With a nod to Chone Figgins and his .325 average with 23 stolen bases, Longoria has delivered at a power position with 16 home runs, 62 RBI, 24 doubles and a .312 batting average.

      Catcher:
      Leader: Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins
      Mike’s pick: Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins. Hey, these voters aren’t doing a bad job after all! This is an easy one, though. Mauer is batting almost .400 (.396) with 14 homers and 43 RBI, and a staggering .695 slugging percentage that leads the American League.

      Outfield
      Leaders: Jason Bay, Boston Red Sox
      Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners
      Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
      Mike’s picks: Jason Bay, Boston Red Sox—It’s hard to argue with 19 homers, 69 driven in (leads the AL) and a respectable .278 average, especially when Big Papi has struggled. Manny who?
      Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels—He’s currently fourth in the voting, but he should be higher. 17 dingers, 56 RBI, and he’s batting .309 with 12 stolen bases.
      Carl Crawford, Tampa Bay Rays—The Rays are running on everyone, and this guy leads them and the world with 38 stolen bases. He’s also batting .314 with 6 homers and 35 RBI.

      Starting pitcher
      As you all know, pitchers are chosen by the managers and announced shortly before the all-star break.
      Mike’s pick: Zach Greinke, Kansas City Royals. The guy got off to a blistering start, when the Royals stunned everyone by spending more than a few days in first place. He’s cooled off, but Greinke is still 9-3 on a team that’s 31-41, he has a stellar 1.90 ERA, and he’s second in the AL with 111 strikeouts to just 18 walks in 109 innings.

      Relief pitcher
      Mike’s pick: Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox. Okay, so he’s not leading the league in saves (he has 17 and the Angels’ Brian Fuentes has 20). But Papelbon sports a 1.97 ERA and 33 K’s in 32 innings. And he just has that sick “you can’t hit me” demeanor.

      Source: Baseball Reference

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, Happy Hour, MLB

      MLB All-25 and Younger Team

      June 8, 2009 /

      There’s a different feel to baseball again – a good feeling.

      Yeah, I know – there are probably still plenty of players who are cheating. But at least the league is (finally) making somewhat of an effort to clean up its image and for that, we as fans have hope that maybe someday the game will be juice-free again.

      Those who have watched their fair share of baseball this season should be reveling in how the game is getting younger again. Instead of teams waiting for dingers in order to score runs, clubs are bunting, stealing and manufacturing scoring opportunities – the way the game is supposed to be played.

      After watching how the Rays won last season, more and more teams are building their rosters by developing home grown talent rather than signing big-name free agents (save for the Yankees, of course) and it’s making the game exciting again. An onus has been made on youth and speed and for the first time in quite a while, baseball is once again a young man’s game.

      That said, I’ve decided to have a little fun by constructing an entire 25-man baseball roster (I’ve named the team “Team Youthful Exuberance”) by using only players who are 25 years of age and younger. Rules and guidelines for the roster are below so enjoy and as always, feel free to make an argument for any players that I might have missed.

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      MLB

      2009 MLB Preview: #14 Minnesota Twins

      March 24, 2009 /

      Click Here to see Previews of all 30 MLB Teams

      Offseason Movement: The Twins were rather quiet this offseason, but they did sign free agent third basemen Joe Crede (formally of the White Sox) and pitcher Luis Ayala, who could contribute as a setup man this season.

      Top Prospect: Aaron Hicks, OF
      The Twins selected Hicks with the 14th overall pick in the 2008 draft in hopes he could become the next Torii Hunter. Hicks is a switch-hitter, with above average power and has demonstrated excellent bat speed. He could turn out to be a five-tool player, but it’ll be a couple years before we see him in the big leagues because he’s only 19. Believe it or not, many teams preferred him as a pitcher in last year’s draft; that’s how good of an athlete Hicks is.

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      MLB

      Twins’ Mauer probably won’t be ready by Opening Day

      March 20, 2009 /

      The Twins are unsure when catcher Joe Mauer will be able to return to the field, but they know it probably won’t be by Opening Day.

      Update: Mauer has pretty much ruled himself out for Opening Day, which has been speculated about but something no one with the club wanted to address. Mauer admitted that it’s, “frustrating,” that it has taken so long to heal and that he’s been unable to learn why he has soreness there in the first place. Will add quotes later.

      When asked if it’s doubtful that he would be ready for Opening Day, he said: “Yeah, I just have to get healthy. I don’t think I’m ready to get out there and play any games. I know it’s getting closer. I really don’t know if I’m going to be there or not.”

      Smith said the club had reached out to specialists in the Twin Cities a few weeks ago in addition to sending Mauer to see a highly-regarded specialist in Baltimore. A source with knowledge of Mauer’s case said the specialist is based at Johns Hopkins University.

      What’s still not known is when Mauer will get back on the field (one week? two? more?). While the Twins haven’t been told that Mauer’s condition is a long-term or chronic problem, no one knows how fast the medication will reduce the inflammation. With Opening Day just over two weeks away, the Twins probably will have to look at prospects Drew Butera or Jose Morales to support veteran Mike Redmond at the position until Mauer is ready to play.

      “There’s not a timetable right now to say when he is going to be on the field,” Smith said. “This is the right treatment for now. We have to get the inflammation down before we turn him loose.”

      Mauer could be a late round steal in your fantasy draft if other owners are petrified of his injury situation. He would obviously be a risk, but a risk worth taking. He would actually pair up nicely with a guy like Bengie Molina, who you could snag in the final couple of rounds while everyone else is filling out their bench. You could get the most out of Molina (who typically starts well but fades after the All-Star Break) and then once Mauer is healthy (presuming he does eventually get healthy), dump Molina on a desperate owner in need of a catcher.

      Just a thought.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      Twins, Giants interested in Pudge Rodriguez

      March 13, 2009 /

      The Twins and Giants have emerged as potential candidates for free agent Pudge Rodriguez.

      The new possibilities, Minnesota and San Francisco, were identified by a source with a National League team in the bidding.

      The Twins’ interest may depend on the health of star catcher Joe Mauer, who’s had a back issue early in camp. The Giants have Bengie Molina to catch, and he’s even penciled in as their cleanup hitter, but Pudge could get games at first base and third base in San Francisco, which is planning to employ youngsters Travis Ishikawa and Pablo Sandoval at those positions, respectively.

      The Marlins play only 15 minutes from Rodriguez’s home, but they also like their young catcher, John Baker. The Astros’ catchers are struggling this spring, but they haven’t been very aggressive so far in their pursuit of Pudge, who’s played superbly for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, hitting .545 with two home runs.

      The Twins make sense because Mauer’s health is a concern. But the Giants’ interest in Pudge for anything more than a backup catcher would be asinine. He’s never played third base and has limited experience at first. He obviously can still hit (he went 4 for 4 with two dingers the other night while playing for Puerto Rico in the WBC), but it doesn’t make any sense for the Giants to sign another crusty old vet to take at bats away from Pablo Sandoval, Travis Ishikawa and John Bowker at the corners. They already have one of those in Rich Aurillia.

      MLB, Rumors & Gossip

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