The Post Where I Praise Dayton Moore | FanGraphs Baseball
Dave Cameron goes out on a limb and says that the Royals' signing of Jeff Francis that took place yesterday may go down as the best free agent signing of the offseason. One thing in particular caught my attention, which is that the Rockies have accounted for the lowest UZR total in the big leagues over the past three seasons, at -109.1. Brad Hawpe has been the biggest offender, but we all know how UZR makes Rockies players look bad. However, there may be something to this; Francis works outside and off the plate a ton, but since he doesn't have great stuff, hitters will tend to push the ball the other way. The majority of hitters in the league are right-handed, and Brad Hawpe played right field. You put two and two together.
Either way, there's no arguing - based on the xFIP vs. ERA, anyway - that Francis has been rather unlucky, especially last season. I for one am rooting for Jeff to succeed in Kansas City. After all, who's to say there won't be a spot for him here in the future?
Rockies second baseman Eric Young Jr. shares the famous quotes that inspire him | MLB.com: News
Thomas Harding writes about how Eric Young Jr. likes to share inspirational/influential quotes with his long list of Twitter followers. Hopefully they inspire him enough to reach his potential and not have to share playing time at Triple-A.
Giants announce 22 non-roster invitees to 2011 Spring Training | SFGiants.com: Official Info
Our bitter rivals have invited one of our former guys to Spring Training - Brad Eldred. Eldred posted a .250/.333/.417 line in 11 games with the Rockies last year, which was the first time he appeared in the big leagues since 2007. He spent the rest of his time in Colorado Springs, where he smacked 30 homers and put up an OPS of .893. Throughout his career, Eldred has been known as the prototypical "AAAA" player. I do not wish him luck with the Giants (at the MLB-level, at least).
Organizational report: Rockies pitching staff is hit-and-miss - USATODAY.com
Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today wrote up an organizational report on the Rockies which, ironically, is hit-and-miss just like its description of the Rox pitching staff.