Rick Hurd is the Contra Costa Times' national baseball writer,
providing commentary and analysis of major league baseball at large. A member of
the Times' staff since 1995, he previously was the beat reporter covering
the Oakland A's. He has written Giants, Sharks, Warriors, 49ers, Raiders
and high school sports.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Follow the bouncing rumor
Retained my post in the lobby of the Walt Disney Dolphin Resort this morning, and the morning buzz is pretty much that: A lot of buzz without much sting. Still waiting for the first major announcement of the Winter Meetings, though it's worth wondering whether there will be any. This is one of the repurcussions of the current market. Free agents continue to be wooed, and even when they do reach a deal, there are physcials to be taken, i's to be dotted, and t's to be crossed. So even when there is a deal in place --- Vicente Padilla's three-year, $34 million deal with the Texas Rangers for example --- teams can't announce it. And if teams don't announce it, they inevitably turn to the the "if it hasn't been announced, it isn't true" card.
Which brings us to the locals. Word I get from various members of the industry, including one member with ties to the A's, is that Mike Piazza's signing with the A's is "imminent." They've reportedly offered him a two-year contract, and the numbers I've heard indicate it would be worth between $14.5 and $15 million, depending on certain incentives. Impossible to know if those numbers are entirely accurate, since Dan Lozano, Piazza's agent, hasn't returned calls and since the A's don't reveal such information. The Rangers apparently have dropped out of the race, and according to one industry source, the Angels never were that interested.
As far as the Giants, all the talk surrounds Barry Bonds, even though the team is working on a potential three-way deal to land Manny Ramirez (a complete long-shot, it says here) and is set to meet with the agents of pitcher Ted Lilly this afternoon.
Speaking of Bonds, the most outlandish rumor I've heard in three years of covering these things circulated last night. The reason A's general manager Billy Beane wasn't at the meetings yet, the rumor went, was that he was personally negotiating a contract with Bonds, and he was going to fly in Wednesday to announce a deal. For one, I'd like to know what Bonds' agent Jeff Borris would say to the notion of Bonds negotiating his own deal. For two, you think Beane would fly 3,000 miles just to hold up a uniform and smile for the cameras? (Uh, no.)
The rumor-mongering is one of the more interesting aspects of this. Heard a veteran news reporter for the New York Times --- his name is escaping me --- once say that when President Kennedy was assassinated, it was the only time he ever saw a rumor move. This reporter was at the luncheon at which JFK was supposed to speak that fateful day, and word of his assassination spread quickly. All I can say is that said reporter never stood in the lobby of the winter meetings, where the rumors take on a direction entirely their own.
I find myself on the grounds of Walt Disney World today, but it's anything but a vacation. If you truly are dying to one day write a thesis on the elements that comprise the theater of the absurd, you could do a whole lot worse than spending a day in the lobby of baseball's winter meetings.
Here's a typical afternoon: Pick a strategically well-placed spot in the lobby (i.e., one where you can witness who walks into the building and who walks out of it). Wait for an acquaintaince _ a source _ to wander through. Ask him what he's hearing. Tell him what you're hearing. Promise to keep each other posted. Go your merry way.
Now, this is not to disparage the ability of certain people to execute this job. it truly is a study in admiration to watch the likes of ESPN's Peter Gammons and Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal schmooze with just about everybody in the building. If there are two more tied-in reporters to this sport, I haven't met them. For most of the rest of us, however, the four days of the winter meetings feels a bit like a cattle call, and you hope that the call will involve movement by the team you're there to cover.
In between all of this, you make a handful of calls, hope for a few call-backs, and wander back and forth from the media room to the lobby. Now, there are far worse ways to make a living, but to me, anything involving baseball that doesn't involve the crack of the bat, freshly cut grass and the roar of a crowd just doesn't measure up.
Anyway, I'm here monitoring all things A's, and to this point, it's been akin to watching a pot of wather boil. General manager Billy Beane, according to one of my lobby contacts, er sources (in this case, a member of the A's organization), is not supposed to arrive until this evening, and his stay may consist of just over a day. Doesn't exactly give off the impression that the A's are in the midst of anything huge. They do continue to pursue Mike Piazza, and according to industry sources, the chief competition will be the Rangers and, possibly, the Angels.
Also, ESPN's Buster Olney reported in his blog that the A's are close to signing reliever Alan Embree, who presumably would take the bullpen spot vacated when Joe Kennedy returns to the rotation. Could be more on this later in the day.
One final thing. The A's just announced they've hired Ty Van Burkleo as their new hitting coach. Burkleo was the roving minor-league instructor for the Angels for the past six seasons.
Not that this is any great proclamation, but the Cardinals are going to be awfully tough to beat at this point. I mean, even the elements are on their side. A slip by Curtis Granderson in center field and a double by David Eckstein that's an out if its six inches to the left were the two key moments in St. Louis' 5-4 win over the Detroit Tigers in Game 4 of the World Series. Stuff like that happens, and a team starts to get the feeling of destiny, and that makes them even better than they normally would be. Picture the 1988 Dodgers.
Anyway, you watch these two plays take place on television, as I did, and you see how excited Tony La Russa is in the dugout. It's as if his pure desire to win briefly blocks out the intensity La Russa usually exudes. It's a great look. And you can't really begrudge a La Russa-managed team that luck, because the truth is, La Russa has dealt with more than his share of buzzard's luck.
In 1988, his A's club ran into Orel Hershiser and Kirk Gibson, but they also were victimized by the likes of Mickey Hatcher, Mike Davis, Tim Leary and so many other average players who played above their abilities as the team's luck crescendoed. Everybody remembers that.
But nobody remembers the Game 2 loss in 1990 against the Reds, when Billy Bates' grounder off Dennis Eckersley kicked up chalk and won it for Cincinnati in extra innings. There was the Roberto Alomar home run in 1992 (also off Eckersley), the blown 3-1 lead in his first NLCS trip as the Cards manager, and a whole share of early-round losses. He's taken his lumps from folks who have said he can't manage in the postseason.
Well, guess what! La Russa is on the verge of joining Sparky Anderson as only the second manager ever to win a World Series in the American and National leagues. He has adjusted his managing style at times, stuck with his original guns at others, and now is getting a healthy dose of luck. Which is what he should get because luck is the result of relentless attack, and if nothing else defines a club managed by La Russa, it's that club's ability to go relentlessly day in and day out.
Looks like after all these years, it will finally get the reward it deserves.
Wrote about Bud Selig for Thursday morning's paper, and I'll be interested in hearing what you, the reader, thinks about it. Essentially claims that Bud Selig might be the best commissioner of all-time, and I'd be interested to hear the arguments against that. For Selig to nail down a collective bargaining agreement for another four years is one thing. To do it two months before the old agreement expired is mind-blowing. Heck, avoiding a work stoppage four years ago was a borderline miracle, and now Selig has done it twice in succession. Name another commissioner (or world leader, for that matter) who could've brought together two sides that had such distrust for one another.
Kills me to say it, too, because Selig is a guy who's real easy to tease. I mean, what about him screams "distinguished leader." And I know that his job, essentially, is to do what the owners want, individual team performance be darned. But he's made other owners realize that to truly flourish as a league, they need to work together with the players. And he's convinced the players that for the continued success of the league, they need to cooperate with the owners. Blows my mind to understand the skills that would go into something like that. I like to think I've got terrific people skills, but I can't imagine walking into that room the first time.
As far as the steroids stain, it wouldn't shock me at all if Selig is someday remembered fondly by fans, because at least his sheer lack of presence in front of Congress exposed to both sides that this was not something that could be hidden from the public anymore. Not sure the public even cares that baseball players are using steroids, but it's as if they've said, "darn it, if those players want to use, fine, but I, the fan, have the right to know about it." Sort of like scuffing a ball in the World Series. Does anybody really care that pitchers still try to gain an edge?
And last, on a different subject, not sure if Game 4 is as important as it normally is. The last two times the Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Cardinals have met in a World Series, the Game 4 winner went on to lose.
I was chatting with Ken Macha casually the day after he'd been Louis XVI'd by Billy Beane, and not surprisingly, he was upbeat. The one part of conversation that I can reval is that he was looking forward to becoming a family man again in Pittsburgh, but that the "transition isn't always that easy."
Amen, brother. One of the interesting facets of my profession occurs immediately after the locals are finished, and I have to blend in with my family again. Granted, it's quite a bit easier now that I'm not on the beat, but let's just say, it isn't always that easy. I'll spare you the details, other than to say that when you've been going full speed for 8 months, the reduction to slow speed grates on all.
Anyway, I've been off in the no-blog zone since the A's were eliminated by the Tigers, but I'll be making daily entries until then. A few of the things that I've observed in the interim:
--- Good for Billy Beane for firing Ken Macha. You simply can't criticize your gutsiest player or essentially fire an employee in front of others, but that's what Macha did with Mark Kotsay and Scott Sauerbeck, respectively. Fixing the "disconnect" immediately is what good general managers do, and we all know about Beane's track record.
--- Having said that, good for Macha, too. He got himself an extra three-year contract last fall, and essentially, two extra seasons after nearly quitting at the end of 2004. There will be enough folks in the game who respect his work that he'll find a job eventually, and four years of being Beane's manager is enough for any lifetime.
--- My respect level for Bud Selig continues to increase, even if is begrudgingly. The fact that a new labor deal was reached two months before the current one expired might be his crowning achievement. If not for the scurge of steroids, Selig might be able to argue that he's the best commish ever.
--- Saw the name "Andy MacPhail" in more than a couple of news reports regarding Selig's one-day successor.
--- Anyone paying attention to the Giants these days?
--- Regarding Dirtgate: One obvious reason -- pure conjecture on my part --- St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa wouldn't protest too loudly about the substance on Kenny Rogers' hand is that he wouldn't want to expose any of his own pitchers to such scrutiny.
It won't go down as painfully as the Kirk Gibson home run in the 1988 World Series, but A's fans get to live with the knowledge that another historic postseason home run has broken their heart.
This time, it was Magglio Ordonez, whose three-run blast on the first pitch he saw from A's closer Huston Street, sent the Detroit Tigers to the World Series for the first time in 22 years. Interesting karma, too. The occasion came exactly 22 years to the day that the Motor City Kitties celebrated their last World Series, a night defined by another Gibson home run.
There should be no regrets if you're an A's fan. The Tigers were simply better. The A's jumped to a 3-0 lead in Game 4, and starter Dan Haren was nasty for five innings. But the Tigers eventually got to him, and once they tied the contest, the ending seemed inevitable.
Want to mention this about Street, too. According to fellow scribes who were there, Street answered every question in the postgame clubhouse. I arrived in there a good half hour after the final pitch, and he was still there, with his head up, talking about the steps he can take to get better. You can't teach that, and it's the reason the A's closing duties should be in good hands for years to come.
So much for that. The Tigers are roaring again, thanks to a two-run rally in the bottom of the fifth that has them within a run, 3-2. It was quite the thing to watch, too.
The uprising started with Brandon Inge nubbing a ball up the third-base line for an infield hit that Eric Chavez made worse by throwing the ball past first base. One out later, Curtis Granderson reached at a typical Dan Haren cutter and looped one into right-center for a double. Yep, that's right, a double. Granderson never hesitated around first, challenged Milton Bradley's arm and made a terrific slide into the inside of the bag (though one had to wonder why Marco Scutaro, the A's shortstop, took the throw from behind the bag). Next came a lined double that just eluded left fielder Jay Payton.
Placido Polanco then hit another seed _ is it true this guy is hitting .900 in his career? _ but right to second baseman D'Angelo Jimenez, who then doubled Monroe off second to end the inning.
So the A's remain in front, but an impending sense of doom has taken hold. No question the Tigers can feel it.
Well, well, well. Perhaps there remains a flicker for the boys with the "Holy Toledo" patches after all. Four innings complete here in Detroit, and the A's are up 3-0. They've led since the third batter of the game, meaning they've played more innings (four) with the lead in this one than they had the entire series (two).
Dan Haren is once again showing why he's the the best choice to pitch a big game for the A's. He's been nasty from the beginning, his splitter falling of the table and his fastball moving with electricity. He's held Detroit to just two hits through four, and has seven strikeouts. He's also pitched out of his only jam, fanning Ivan Rodriguez on three pitches and shattering Alexis Gomez's bat to kill Detroit's first-and-second, one-out threat in the fourth.
Meantime, Milton Bradley has remained in the game, but it's clear his right thigh muscle is bugging him. Not sure if he can keep playing on it, but Bradley has shown himself to be a gamer of the highest level.
Anyway, halfway done here (the A's went in order in the top of the fifth), and a three-run lead. Think the A's would've taken that without any objections when the day began?
If you could encapsulate the American League Championship Series into one inning, look no further than the top of the first today. The A's struck first, thanks to Milton Bradley. Yet, another development might wind up being more important, and naturally _ given the A's luck in this series _ it's a negative one.
Bradley, who has been the A's best player by far in this series,put his team ahead 1-0 with an opposite-field double off Detroit Tigers starter Jeremy Bonderman. But the good feeling associated with that dissipated when Bradley pulled up lame after taking off for third base while Frank Thomas was hitting. It appeared to be something with his right thigh muscle, and when he subsequently scored on Eric Chavez's double, Bradley was running very gingerly.
If Bradley has to come out at some point _ and given the 50-degree temperature, that remains a distinct possibility _ the A's will be deprived of their top RBI guy in the series. That would be a huge blow anyway, because Bradley has two home runs, a double and seven RBI against Detroit, but especially so because Frank Thomas continues to struggle. Thomas popped out with Bradley on second and is now 0-for-11 in the series.
The folks are starting to file into Comerica Park, and there's a festiveness in the air. Can't blame them. Any day that you wake up with a chance to watch your team go to the World Series has the promise of being unforgettable. Besides, these fans have watched a lot of hideous baseball over the past decade and a half, so much that you forget the Detroit Tigers once were one of baseball's proud franchises. They don't need a win today to re-establish their good standing --- the did that long ago --- but it would be a nice exclamation point to a magical season.
The A's, meantime, have to pin their hopes on Dan Haren. If Haren produces a gem along the lines of Sept. 13 in the Metrodome --- eight shutout innings in a 1-0 win --- then the A's can push this to Sunday. Then, Barry Zito would get a chance to make sure his last Oakland memory isn't a dud. And then, who knows, perhaps they get the series back to Oakland and all bets are off.
On second thought, there are way too many "if's" in that equation. Bottom line is that a superior team is smelling the brass ring. It reminds me of when the A's swept the Red Sox in the ALCS back in 1988. Attended both games that year, and you could just sense before those games that there was nothing the Red Sox could do to put off the inevitable. Same feeling pervades here.
Yep, Motown most likely will be partying here in a few hours. And then all those "brain-dead" folks who live here --- it was a joke, people! --- will be the envy of the baseball-watching world.
The white towels are out in force at Comerica Park, and the way folks are waving them in the air, it looks like the expected snow flurries have started early. And unless a certain place freezes over here in the next couple of innings, the A's will be jaw-deep in a 3-0 deficit in the American League Championship Series.
To this point, they have been mesmerized by Tigers starter Kenny Rogers, who looks as imposing in a Tigers uniform as Denny McLain once did. Rogers has allowed only two hits in seven innings, and it's hard to remember a single ball that's been hit on the screws. That's 14 2/3 innings worth of goose eggs in the postseason for Rogers, who has changed permanently the paragraph on his baseball biography that dealt with his inability to pitch big games.
Meantime, the A's got a decent effort out of Rich Harden. He departed after 5 2/3 innings, having allowed three runs. And if the A's weren't willing to take that entering this game, they just weren't being realistic.
Anyway, when this series is over _ and at this point, there's no reason to think it'll last beyond Saturday _ the A's will point to many things for their failures. Frank Thomas has struggled offensively, Eric Chavez's failed to make a couple of terrific plays that he normally makes in his sleep; and Barry Zito and Esteban Loaiza stunk. But this series has been more about what the Tigers have done than what the A's haven't. Anyone who says otherwise must be seeing a different game.
\\inability to corral a pair of difficult grounders and subpar outings from Barry Zito and Esteban Loaiza _
So,what kind of alternative plans do you have for the World Series? I mean, not to dump dirt on the A's prematurely, but Detroit's 2-0 lead halfway through Game 3 seems like a 20-0 lead, the way Kenny Rogers is dealing. The Gambler has retired 10 of the last 11 he's faced, and the lone exception, Marco Scutaro, was retired on the front end of a double play to end the fifth.
Rich Harden is out to start the fifth, and he's hung in there since his bad opening inning. He can't retire Placido Polanco _ he's 2-for-2 _ but then again, who on the A's staff can. Polanco is now 6-for-10 in the series.
The A's may not win this series, but at least the nation has received a glimpse of Mark Kotsay's brilliance in center field. Kotsay single-handedly bailed Harden out of a potentially rough fourth inning, first by making a sliding catch of Ramon Santiago's sinking soft looper to center field, then by sprinting a good 30-40 yards to run down Curtis Granderson's drive to right-center field. Both plays occurred with one out and a runner on second base.
Meantime, some quick housekeeping. Mentioned in an earlier blog that Ramon Santiago was the DH. He's actually the DH, with Omar Infante in the DH slot.
Oh, and it's up to 45 degrees outside. Nice and balmy.
Well, so much for seven scoreless. Rich Harden's first six pitches were out of the strike zone, and if that doesn't spell a bad omen, nothing will. Thus, the first inning evolved exactly as you might expect. The bad news for A's fans: Harden surrendered two runs to put his team in a hole against Kenny Rogers. The good news for A's fans: Could've been much worse, because the Tigers had a run in, runners at first and second and no out.
From there, Harden worked his way out of it. A fielder's choice ground out by Magglio Ordonez and a 3-6-1 double play by Carlos Guillen minimized the damage. Harden then flipped the ball in disgust toward the mound, and you couldn't blame him. For the a's, it's all uphill from here.
This may be the only time I ever write this, but for one day, being a sportswriter is more appealing than being a baseball player. At this time and place, anyway. The A's and Detroit Tigers are set to strap it on for Game 3 of the American League Championship Series in weather that's much more suited for the Raiders and Detroit Lions (and what a clash of the titans that would be). Temperature on my hotel thermostat was 38 degrees when I left for the park a couple of hours ago, the wind is whipping, and it's about as miserable as you can imagine.
In other words, it's gonna be a miserable day for the hitters. Now whether that helps or aids Rich Harden in his quest to put the A's back in this series remains to be seen, as is the effect the cold will have on Detroit starter Kenny Rogers. But you'd imagine this will be a very low-scoring contest, perhaps dependent on the bullpens.
Harden, meantime, heads to the hill for the first time since the Oct. 1 regular-season finale and for just the ninth time all season. The consensus among the scribes seems to be that the A's need seven shutout innings from Harden, but that would be asking a lot. To me, the A's have to be pleased if Harden gives them five quality innings. The guy is essentially in the midst of his spring training, and the A's had better be very careful with him. No use losing him for another extended period by pushing him further than he's ready to go. If the A's need more than five quality innings from Harden to win this series,then Jim Leyland and his brand of magic will be on display next weekend against the winner of the NL.
Speaking of Leyland, keep an eye on Ramon Santiago today. He's Leyland's designated hunch of the day --- Santiago will be the DH --- and we saw what happened when he chose Alexis Gomez to fill that spot in Game 2.
And finally, one more note on the weather. Colleague Gary Peterson just wandered the park and said you'd have to be "brain dead" to pay to sit in this cold weather and watch a game. Nobody told him that's a qualification for living in Detroit in the first place.
