Tuesday Morning Rockpile:
by Russ Oates on May 27, 2008 8:24 AM MDT
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PrintLast night's game was oh so much fun to watch . . . if you were a Phillies fan. I mean, it apparently "exorcised a few demons" the Phillies acquired back in October when the Rockies swept them. The Philadelphia Inquirer's Phil Sheridan points out the, uh, obvious:
The Colorado Rockies couldn't have enjoyed getting pounded by the Phillies last night. You can be just as sure they wouldn't trade their last three victories over the Phils for a reversal of this outcome. . . . It's a long way from May to October, but the Phillies have survived the journey from October to May. Ask the Rockies how hard that can be.
Yeah, but can the Phillies survive the journey from the end of May to the end of September?
Clint Hurdle on Jorge De La Rosa's status with the team:
"It wasn't a step forward," was all Hurdle said when asked about De La Rosa's future.
If he's still in the rotation come Saturday, DLR and his 9.00 ERA will face Ryan Dempster and the Cubs.
Injury updates: Garrett Atkins may be back tonight; Ryan Speier will join Asheville on Wednesday for a rehab assignment; Jason Hirsh and Luiz Vizcaino threw in simulated games and will rehab with the Sky Sox starting this weekend; Micah Bowi's throwing BP sessions; Brad Hawpe's right hamstring is feeling better. Are you?
Bob Apodaca on Yorvit's performance Sunday:
Revisiting Aaron Cook's complete-game four-hitter against the Mets on Sunday, Apodaca heaped praise on catcher Yorvit Torrealba: "It was like they were reading each others' minds. That's how well-called a game that was from Yorvit."
Torrealba went 0-for-2 with a sac fly.
U-Ball vs. Kyle Kendrick tonight.
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So where was Yorvit's masterful game calling yesterday?
bangs head into desk
He was reading the wrong minds
“hanging curve-ball?....ok, I’ll call that”
Colorado Rockies: Continuing a long tradition of playing meaningless games in June!
You know, it's such a weird coincidence...
but Yorvit can only read good pitchers’ minds. It’s so weird, it’s kind of like I had this ability to play chess really well when my dad gave me hints but for some reason my mastery of the game wasn’t quite the same when he wasn’t there. So odd.
A couple of random thoughts
A: The Rose vs. Dempster, on Saturday OR we could have Glendon Rusch vs Dempster. ok, option A and Option B both suck. Is there an option C? Seriously, any out of the box thoughts?
B) The Reds will activate Jay Bruce today, their biggest prospect. Went from A ball to AAA last year. Any hope that the Rockies could start “rushing” players with talent trough the system? We need help in the big leagues, and next year in 09 is looking like a last shot year with Atkins and Holliday, with 2010 being a transition year (again). Are there any players we should push? Holecomb, Rike, Milller, Chacin, etc? (why I ask: It looks like to me the Rockies MUST have all their prospects play a full year at each stop, unless their name is Tulowitzki or Reynolds, which is frustratingly slow for a team that has to build with “prospects” every year)
Colorado Rockies: Continuing a long tradition of playing meaningless games in June!
Well
we’ve been rushing pitchers through the ranks for years. See Brian Rekar, Jeff Francis, Jon Burke, Franklin Morales, Greg Reynolds, Ubaldo, etc. Most attempts were not so successful.
As for this East Coast writer, it is their way of trying to stick it up our butts for last year. East Coast people are always trying to make themselves look good at the expense of others. They like to think they are something.
Hey Phil Sheridan. Let us know when you make the Hall of Fame not!
by PinchHitLancePainter on May 27, 2008 8:49 AM MDT up reply actions
I don't buy this completely,
Francis wasn’t rushed, Reynolds wasn’t rushed, Jimenez probably wasn’t rushed. Francis has had a pretty decent but not great run with the Rockies because he’s a pretty decent but not great pitcher. Jimenez might be great at some point, or he might just always be the half effective, half wild pitcher he is right now, the high octane of the PCLwouldn’t speed up that transition any more than the MLB if it’s still coming. Morales maybe was rushed, but it shouldn’t be an excuse for his current woes and the only reason he should be in AAA rather than Colorado right now is because he’s a losing proposition at the moment.
I think this thought that everybody needs a year at Colorado Springs at once mollycoddles pitchers too much and winds up hurting the Rockies by not having their best pitchers on the field more than it hurts the young arms development and I have not seen sufficient evidence that organizations that make sure their best pitchers spend a full year in AAA (is there even one) have any more of a success rate with their prospects than those that don’t.
That second paragraph/sentence...
...burned my retinas!
It’s like you channeled Bernie Lincicome, or something.
(If we had smileys, this would be where I had the winking one – to show that this is good-natured ribbing – you know the one!)
oof, low blow...
No, actually I can take it. I don’t really like how I worded that paragraph, either, even though I stand by what I wrote. I don’t know of any MLB club that feels they have to have pitchers with a full season of AAA, under their belts, and I think the majority has it right in this case.
Nah!
Bad paragraphs happen to good people. If you weren’t a solid grammatician (grammatizer? gramma-ma-jamma?), I would just keep my mouth shut.
Can't help you on A
Out of the box looks just as shaky as in the box in that regard.
As for B) first of all, I think your view’s a little pessimistic for 2010, as the major transitioning for a Holliday/Atkins departure is already taking place. It would be accelerated if Hurdle and O’Dowd would realize Jeff Baker’s not going to be part of that picture, but Stewart and Smith seem likely to be prime time players at that point, as should Tulo and Iannetta. That leaves second and center as sort of perpetual transitions, but at least we’ll have catcher out of the way. Plus, Fowler with Nelson/Young/Herrera is far and away more likely to produce at the plate than Taveras with Nix but that should go without saying. We’re in very good shape for 2010 lineup wise, even without Holliday and/or Atkins.
For both 2009 and 2010, the major issue is the maturation and health of our pitching rotation. We absolutely must have Reynolds and Jimenez perform at a #2/#3 pitching level, and Hirsh has to be healthy. If that happens, rebounds by either Francis or Morales are gravy, and we’d have plenty of options to look at as alternatives. For the rest of 2008, the development of Reynolds/Jimenez/Hirsh seems to be the most important piece to getting this team back on a winning track. I don’t really care about de la Rosa or Rusch, that’s just a fifth starter. Hirsh or Kip Wells will replace them soon enough. Francis, like I said yesterday, I worry a lot about, but if Reynolds and Jimenez perform, he’ll become more expendable and less of an issue.
I don't know about rushing players
but when a player shows competency at a level, they should advance.
For instance, Hynick should have spent the second half last year in Tulsa adjusting to Double A at that time. Had he done so, he could be more acclimated at this point and potentially close to contributing to the big leagues. OR, his struggles would have shown the Rockies he’s further out and they should plan accordingly with more depth signings in the off-season. With that in mind:
Chacin shouldn’t pitch another game in Low A. He gets it, he’s dominating, and there are ZERO flaws in his game statistically (okay, he could strike out just a few more). Riordan should follow around the all-star break, but that’s it for pitching prospects.
On the offensive side, Fowler could spend the last half of the year in the bigs, but that likely won’t do him many favors. He’s having a good year but still looks pretty raw here in Tulsa. Rox Girl is right in saying he’s an ‘09 guy, but out of necessity, he could be like last year’s Carlos Gomez with the Mets.
The Rockies
reacquired Dustan Mohr today from the Wichita Wingnuts. He’ll join the Sky Sox later today.
"Nuts!" - Gen. Anthony McAuliffe
Purple Row - Covering all your Rockies needs!
What I said? Certainly..,
There’s almost a zero percent chance that Mohr has anything of value to give to an MLB team at this point. The Rockies made this move just to quickly and I assume temporarily fill a depleted Colorado Springs roster with a friendly face. It also means that either they don’t feel they have enough outfielders on the farm to fill from within, or more likely don’t want to disrupt their affiliates with a lot of short-term transactions.
My questioning comment
referred to the signing of Mohr, not your tongue-in-cheek post.
Note that the Wichita press release said Mohr’s best season was 2005 with the Rockies. He was simply awful that year, a strikeout machine (94 in 266 at-bats) who managed 17 homers and a woeful .214 average.
by alex colfax on May 27, 2008 11:02 AM MDT up reply actions
Now we have a shortage
Bet Joe Gaetti is looking pretty good right now!
OR CZARNIECKI WHO IS THE .....
leading regular hitter at AA for the Angels….last I saw he was .303 and of course Gaetti is .360+ in AAA/AA for the A’s with power.
by 91 wins in 08 on May 27, 2008 5:54 PM MDT up reply actions
whoa...
even assuming this is just a temporary move, aren’t there any better players in the independent league. Why not take a flier on someone with a little more potential than Mohr?
Not a whole lot of young outfield talent...
In the league they plucked Mohr from, and the American Association is one of the more advanced independent leagues there is.
I agree with you that I’d prefer your scenario, but perusing the leaderboards, I don’t see an outfielder in the 24-25 year old age range that jumps out and says give this guy a look that scouts and coaches would be able to tell that he was worth keeping in a two week tryout. I think this move does boil down to a lot of cronyism and familiarity, but I don’t know if there’s a more potential laden option available. I imagine defense plays a part in this also, still there’s zero chance of an upside with Mohr, so like you, I kind of wish we went a different direction.
Hooray!
More scrap heap players!
Is it 2009 yet?
by The Lodo Magic Man on May 27, 2008 10:44 AM MDT up reply actions
2008 Draft
With the draft less than two weeks away, is there any likelyhood that the Rocks will select a more polished college pitcher at #25 that would have a chance to supplement this push of talent expected to arrive in 2010?
TGFPR!!
If you go strictly off rankings
and it seems teams do pretty much early, the Rockies would still have to reach for a pitchability type. This draft has more high risk reward collegians than pitchability types in round one.
I guess a guy that fits your mold is Lance Lynn of Ole Miss, who reminds me most of Jason Jennings. He’s very big and thick, has an assortment of mediocre pitches, and uses them all to attack the strike zone. He’s competitive, has been a very successful college ace, and should need little seasoning.
That said, he’s not special, may be no more than a number four or five guy, and probably profiles best as a second rounder.
Bottom line, you don’t want to make this move for two reasons: One, settling for low upside pitchability gives you a farm system like the White Sox, and two, you shouldn’t make draft decisions based on the big league roster, especially if you pick low in round one.
That said, there are two solid collegiate fielders that could move quickly and fill positions of need. Weeks of Miami and Castro of Stanford (who has supposedly been evaluated heavily by the Rockies). Castro could be a steal as a big, athletic catcher with power and mobility behind the plate, and Weeks was once considered a top ten prospect.
Last I had read, the Rockies were looking at Castro (good), Hewitt (great), and HS pitcher Odorizzi (pass).
The Phillies
I’m kind of in shock & awe after watching them play my “other team” (Astros) over the weekend. They just hammer mediocre pitching. The Astros’ trotted out a weak starter (Sampson) Sunday, got a 6-4 lead, then tried to stay in the game with the back of their bullpen, having used the top guys in the prior 2 games. Result: 15-6 blowout.
The Rox were in the same position last night. Result: 20-6 blowout. Either the Rox weak relievers are 25% worse than the Astros’ weak relievers, or the bank park is 25% more hitter-friendly than the juice box.
Seriously, after Howard wakes up in mid-May (as he does each year) to join Rollins, Utley and the curiously-rejuvenated Pat Burrell in the top 5 of their order, that may be the strongest top of the lineup in baseball. Add a career minor league catcher (Coste) hitting .340+ for the time being, and that’s a scary team to play.
There is a bright side to the '08 season.
Barry Bonds & Roger Clemens are out of baseball.
Holliday
How long is he out for? Contemplating acquiring him for fantasy purposes, but the deal is a rip-off if he’s out longer than 20 days.
He's on the 15 day DL
But that doesn’t mean anything necessarily… He’s been coming through for me nicely in my league, despite not having a lot of HRs
by Rox R Champs on May 27, 2008 1:00 PM MDT up reply actions
Any opinions on the best lineup
for tonight’s game? Here is what I’d like to see:
Q/Herrera SS
Smith RF
Helton 1B
Atkins 3B
Spilly CF
Stewie LF
Iannetta C
Baker 2B
I think he has
the athleticism to do it and we may need to find out if Holliday is on his way out. I don’t think Matty is gone yet, but just in case.
What we will actually see is:
Sully CF
Q SS
Helton 1B
Atkins 3B
Spilly LF
Smith RF
Torrealba C
Herrera 2B
I'd like to see
Pods CF
Herrera 2B
Helton 1B
Atkins 3B
Smith LF
Spilly RF
Iannetta C
Q SS
Every day is a Holliday!
id flip smith and spilly
good to have another pods fan on here good lineup
Scott Podsenik for center field 08
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