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2012 MLB Catch All thread


southsider2k5

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QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Mar 15, 2012 -> 11:13 PM)
http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/blog/jon-heym...-has-gone-wrong

 

The Braves, only team worse than the White Sox so far...theories on the carry-over effect from the end of last year and the Nationals/Marlins passing them.

 

Poor J4L, with the Blue Jays, Royals and Braves all looking like 4th place teams, life is not fun.

The Sox finished in 2nd to last place in the Cactus league in 2005 and 2008 and dead last in 2000.

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BMac pretty well smashed the A's

 

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/story/1792406...tops-in-oakland

 

PHOENIX -- The A's are different, and not just because there's a movie out about them.

 

The A's are different, and not because of market inefficiencies and on-base percentage.

 

The A's are different because when you play for them, you just figure that if you do well enough, you'll be playing for someone else before long.

 

"You do know your time is limited here," said opening day starter Brandon McCarthy, who figures this year is probably it for him in Oakland. "You're not looking to put down roots."

 

"Healthy with a heartbeat, there's a good chance I could have been out of here, too," said Dallas Braden, who (at least in his mind) was saved from an offseason trade because he's coming back from shoulder surgery.

 

That's not fair, of course. The A's don't trade away everyone.

 

They only traded away two-fifths of their starting rotation last winter. Well, only two-fifths of their starting rotation and their closer.

 

They seem to have done well in those trades, which shipped Trevor Cahill to the Diamondbacks, Gio Gonzalez to the Nationals and Andrew Bailey to the Red Sox. The buzz in A's camp this spring was about the great young arms, about Tommy Milone (acquired for Gonzalez), and Brad Peacock (also for Gonzalez), and Jarrod Parker (for Cahill).

 

"Seeing these guys, it's like, 'Oh, wow, we've got something to work with,'" catcher Kurt Suzuki said.

 

And something to eventually trade off for the next group of young arms?

 

Maybe it won't always be like this in Oakland. Or maybe the A's won't be in Oakland anymore. Maybe they'll finally find a way to move to San Jose, and all the churning will end.

 

That's the idea, they say. That's why they traded away Cahill and Gonzalez and Bailey, even though they were all young and not yet ridiculously expensive. The A's weren't going to keep them long enough for a new stadium deal to provide the revenue to pay them when they did get expensive.

 

The A's weren't going to be able to compete with the big-budget Angels and Rangers this year, so they swapped sort-of-young for very young, with hopes that they can compete a few years down the line.

 

They also re-signed Coco Crisp, signed Manny Ramirez and spent big for Yoenis Cespedes, capping off one of the busiest winters in baseball. But unless Cespedes becomes a star (and he could), the most significant moves they made were to trade away the three pitchers.

 

If you're trying to win now, you don't do that.

 

What's interesting is that the moves didn't seem to leave the remaining A's feeling like the front office doesn't care about them, or about winning. Perhaps because this is the way things have been done for quite a while in Oakland, there's acceptance without any hint of depression.

 

"This is the life I've lived since I've been here," said Braden, drafted by the A's in 2004 and with them in the big leagues since 2007. "Younger guys are somewhat taken aback. I liken it to growing up in the 'hood. A guy who grows up in the 'hood understands how to navigate through it.

 

"I've got a pretty good compass here."

 

Of course he does. After his first year with the A's, he saw them trade away Dan Haren. The next year, he saw Joe Blanton go.

 

He saw Brett Anderson come in the Haren trade. He saw Gonzalez come in the Nick Swisher trade.

 

McCarthy showed up last year, signed as a free agent. He's a free agent again after this year, and figures if he does well enough, he'll end up elsewhere -- and not because he wants to.

 

With the A's, it's just reality.

 

"I feel bad for fans of teams like this," McCarthy said. "You see the die-hard fans. Half the league is populated by guys they used to be fans of. It would be nice to see them win, even if I end up seeing it from the other side."

 

When McCarthy talks about the fans, it's not just hyperbole. He's thinking of himself, and of a guy named Fernando Torres.

 

If you don't follow soccer, you may never have heard of him. But McCarthy counts himself as a die-hard Liverpool supporter, and he can't forget Torres leaving Liverpool for Chelsea midway through the 2010-11 English Premier League season.

 

"It was the first time I was really affected by a player I liked leaving," he said. "I saw him play for Chelsea, and I was like, 'How can I cheer for you now?'"

 

He hopes A's fans will understand when he inevitably leaves Oakland. He figures they will, because by now they've got to be used to it.

 

He understands.

 

"At least there is a plan for success here," he said, pointing to the young pitchers acquired in this past winter's trades. "It might be after I'm gone, though."

 

Yeah, that's just the way it is, when you pitch for the A's.

 

"You know the realities," McCarthy said. "Some teams are feeder teams."

 

You think that's worth a movie?

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http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...lb&c_id=mlb

 

Carpenter shut down; likely to start year on DL

By Jenifer Langosch / MLB.com | 03/21/12 10:17 AM ET

 

JUPITER, Fla. -- Chris Carpenter returned to St. Louis on Tuesday to undergo a new series of tests after shoulder/neck weakness resurfaced during the right-hander's session of catch on Monday. This latest interruption of his spring throwing program leaves Carpenter almost surely set to begin the season on the disabled list.

 

Carpenter's spring routine was first stalled earlier this month by what the right-hander described as neck stiffness. An MRI suggested that the issue was being cause by a bulging disc in Carpenter's neck. After 11 days of rest and treatment, Carpenter resumed throwing on March 14. He threw off the mound once and faced batters in live batting practice on Sunday. Everything felt fine during and immediately after that session.

 

"Things weren't just quite right," general manager John Mozeliak said. "I would use the term weakness. For precautionary reasons, we just think it's time to take a timeout, have him evaluated. We're trying to determine if it's the neck, the shoulder and what's causing the weakness. We don't know the answer to that yet."

 

All the tests Carpenter underwent on Tuesday came back negative. He will undergo another series on Wednesday, with these focusing more on a potential nerve issue. Carpenter has had a history of nerve-related problems, and he chose to travel to St. Louis for this most recent round of tests in order to meet with the same doctors that have treated the issue in the past.

 

The Cardinals won't be able to establish a timeline for Carpenter's return or a blueprint for treatment until they know the root of Carpenter's discomfort. Mozeliak said that the club should have a pretty good idea of Carpenter's immediate future in about two days.

 

"They're just trying to go through the process to determine what that next step would look like," Mozeliak said. "It is something of a concern in the sense that it's reoccurring and we don't know the exact source. It may be related to that [bulging disc], but it looks like it could be something else."

 

Mozeliak added that it's "highly unlikely" Carpenter will be on the Opening Day roster. That would leave Lance Lynn to assume the fifth rotation spot indefinitely. Lynn was recently put on a starter's routine in preparation for the possibility that Carpenter would not be ready.

 

The Cardinals also have to choose a new Opening Day starter, as that honor was set to go to Carpenter for the sixth time in his career.

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QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 23, 2012 -> 09:31 AM)
Scott Miller ‏ @ScottMCBS

BREAKING: Joba Chamberlain had surgery for open dislocation in right ankle last night. #NYYankees

How did he do that? That is really difficult to do and is a significant injury for a right handed pitcher. Getting full motion back after this type of injury is difficult and will effect his mechanics.

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QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 23, 2012 -> 09:31 AM)
Scott Miller ‏ @ScottMCBS

BREAKING: Joba Chamberlain had surgery for open dislocation in right ankle last night. #NYYankees

 

Wow...that's bad. So much for his career IMO. That's too bad...

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