Last week, I took an enlightening trip to the Louisville Slugger bat factory in Louisville, KY before the Triple-A All Star Game. Both the trip to the bat factory and game were enjoyable and an unique experience. But this trip comes at a time when a huge controversy is brewing over the safety and usage of maple baseball bats. The controversy surrounded much of the talk during the 30 minute tour.
Ash has been the standard for bats for over a century, but in the last decade the use of maple bats have become greater. Much of this was because of Barry Bonds converting to maple and knocking 73 home runs over the fence of Pac Bell Park (now called AT&T Park) and other National League venues in the 2001 season. Players recognized the advantage of maple bats.
The advantage comes with the barrel speed one receives with maple from more torque. Because of a thinner handle, the barrel will stay behind the handle. When the hitter's bat reaches the ball, the rest of the barrel catches up and thus creates more speed (thus more power) at the point of contact.
In recent years however, maple bats are now seen as more dangerous than ash. Maple does not break as often as ash, however when they do break, they tend to shatter. An ash bat will simply crack when it breaks. A good example of this came at a Columbus Clippers game on Wednesday evening when third baseman Yurendell de Caster swung at a pitch and his bat split into two without making contact on the pitch.
A broken barrel of a bat is moving just as fast as a line drive ball, but that part of the bat is much larger than a baseball. This has proven dangerous already for players, umpires, and fans. An umpire received a concussion when he was beemed with a shattered maple bat.
Major League Baseball has a dilemma on their hands. Do they accept the risk that these bats pose or lose the extra power that these bats provide. That is a tough call for a league hungry for more power.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Who wants Sabthia?
So there is no secret that the Indians are wanting to part ways with their franchise pitcher C.C. Sabathia. This was confirmed in a press release by Cleveland Indians General Manager Mark Shapiro.
But how much can the Indians get out of the 27 year-old and who might be interested. Obviously teams that did not expect to be in the situation they're in now (i.e. the Tampa Bay Rays. Most teams have about 75 games left in their season. If Sabathia was to be traded today, and if he started every fifth game, that would mean he would play in no more than 15 games. Don't forget that Sabathia is a free agent after the season is over.
So let's say that your General Manager of, oh, let's say the Tampa Bay Rays (Andrew Friedman), what would you give up to have someone play in 15 games for your team? Tampa Bay has lots of good, young assets in the higher minors. Maybe 25 year-old pitcher Jeff Niemann who is doing well in triple-A Durham. But is Shapiro willing to accept a AAA pitcher for a big league one? Cleveland is going to need a lot more help than that. And the Indians don't just want draft picks.
Now in the midst of an eight game losing streak, the team should look at making wholesale changes. It would be unthinkable to trade Cliff Lee or Grady Sizemore, but depth is something this team does not have? And has anyone seen Buffalo's team lately? No one is waiting in the wings there. Aaron Laffey and Jeremy Sowers were two of their last remaining high level prospects, and now that they're in Cleveland, that is it. They are going to have to wait sometime to develop from within. Jordan Brown is the closest thing to a prospect in Buffalo. But hasn't been considered much of one simply because Ryan Garko was supposed to be the first baseman of the future.
The point is A) Don't expect much for Sabathia by himself. B) If you are really wanting to give Cleveland a chance in the 2009 season, you are going to need more than what Sabathia can give you in the trade market.
But how much can the Indians get out of the 27 year-old and who might be interested. Obviously teams that did not expect to be in the situation they're in now (i.e. the Tampa Bay Rays. Most teams have about 75 games left in their season. If Sabathia was to be traded today, and if he started every fifth game, that would mean he would play in no more than 15 games. Don't forget that Sabathia is a free agent after the season is over.
So let's say that your General Manager of, oh, let's say the Tampa Bay Rays (Andrew Friedman), what would you give up to have someone play in 15 games for your team? Tampa Bay has lots of good, young assets in the higher minors. Maybe 25 year-old pitcher Jeff Niemann who is doing well in triple-A Durham. But is Shapiro willing to accept a AAA pitcher for a big league one? Cleveland is going to need a lot more help than that. And the Indians don't just want draft picks.
Now in the midst of an eight game losing streak, the team should look at making wholesale changes. It would be unthinkable to trade Cliff Lee or Grady Sizemore, but depth is something this team does not have? And has anyone seen Buffalo's team lately? No one is waiting in the wings there. Aaron Laffey and Jeremy Sowers were two of their last remaining high level prospects, and now that they're in Cleveland, that is it. They are going to have to wait sometime to develop from within. Jordan Brown is the closest thing to a prospect in Buffalo. But hasn't been considered much of one simply because Ryan Garko was supposed to be the first baseman of the future.
The point is A) Don't expect much for Sabathia by himself. B) If you are really wanting to give Cleveland a chance in the 2009 season, you are going to need more than what Sabathia can give you in the trade market.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Wow! It has been a while
I know it has been a while since I have been on to update you on what is going on. I have been enjoying summertime and everything that goes with it. Now that the Arena Football season is over, the only thing on my sports mind will be baseball. But just because the NHL is still months away from starting training camp, and the Arena Football season is over does not mean there isn't things to talk about with those.
As has been reported on all the local outlets, the Blue Jackets are in the process of revamping their lineup for the fall. General Manager Scott Howson never got the first-line center he was searching for. What he did get was some quality forwards and defensemen to boost this perennial losing team. Most will look at the list of names and scratch their heads on who these are. But what what you have to look at is they got players who are close to peaking or are at the top of their careers and a number of these players could have a breakout season.
R.J. Umberger, 26, is likely to have a breakout season. Critics say Umberger is not top center quality. I disagree. He knows Columbus very well playing at Ohio State a few years ago. That showed in the playoffs when he scored 15 points in 17 games. Umberger also showed signs of improvement after scoring 28 points in the 2006-07 season, he scored 50 points in the 2007-08 year. And playing with one of the league's premier wingers in Rick Nash will only boost those numbers. Umberger already comes in with much better numbers than center Michael Peca who scored just 34 times last season.
Kristian Huselius is also another huge scoring acquisition. He is a left winger who I expect will be converted to right wing so he can play with Nash. Believe it or not, Huselius has scored as much the last couple seasons than Nash. Huselius scored 66 times last season compared to 69 for Nash. The season before, Huselius scored 77 times compared to 57 for Nash.
Raffi Torres rounds out the new forwards. He is coming of an injury shortened season where he only played 32 games but is likely to score 30-40 times in a season. Only being 27, he is not likely to slow down anytime soon.
“Torres is an experienced NHL player who combines a physical presence with the ability to score goals,” Howson said. “He will also bring to our club the experience of someone who has played deep into the playoffs as he was a significant contributor to Oilers’ run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals.”
What about the forwards? Jan Hejda and Rostislav Klesla will still be key members of the blue line, however there is for the first time in team history depth back there. Mike Commodore, Fedor Tyutin, and Christian Backman all provide something different. The only thing that they have in common is they are between 25-29, and yet again the team didn't rely on getting veterans on their last limb to supply their team with talent. Commodore and Hejda would make an excellent stay at home and shutdown-their-offense pairing. Backman and Tyutin were added because they can quickly move the puck. Don't forget Kris Russell and O.K. Tollefsen.
“All strong teams are built from the backend out and we feel like we made significant strides in that area," Howson said.
So the team has upgraded at every spot, however the Central will be an even more tough division to play in. Chicago could contend this season with all their youth. Detroit is reloading, and doing a good job of it with grabbing Marian Hossa.
I also wanted to touch really quickly on the Destroyers. Doug Kay was recently dismissed as their head coach. Not a surprise after a disappointing 3-13 season following a trip to the Arena Bowl. But one thing that will be missed about Kay is his passion for what Arena Football is about; that is the fans.
After the Destroyers were blown out by the Georgia Force on June 7, many of the players did not want to come out of the locker room for the post game autograph session. Derek Lee sat in his locker with no clothes on and a towel over his head. Kay found out that many members of the team were not on the field. He ran into the locker room and told his players that they had to get out on the field. Within a second, Lee was all of a sudden not in his locker. I still have no idea how (or even if) he got dressed.
I am sure Kay saw the writing on the wall during the final home game on June 14 when the Destroyers lost a tough game to Grand Rapids. That was the infamous Justin Zwick game. After a week of the Destroyers' P.R. types building up Zwick's debut, he came in the second quarter to throw for a 47 yard touchdown. That was all she wrote. Kay put Nagy back into the game only to lose with the offense on the field at the end of the game down by three. Kay obviously always stood behind Nagy, however when asked about Zwick's play, he wanted to give credit to the offensive coordinator.
As has been reported on all the local outlets, the Blue Jackets are in the process of revamping their lineup for the fall. General Manager Scott Howson never got the first-line center he was searching for. What he did get was some quality forwards and defensemen to boost this perennial losing team. Most will look at the list of names and scratch their heads on who these are. But what what you have to look at is they got players who are close to peaking or are at the top of their careers and a number of these players could have a breakout season.
R.J. Umberger, 26, is likely to have a breakout season. Critics say Umberger is not top center quality. I disagree. He knows Columbus very well playing at Ohio State a few years ago. That showed in the playoffs when he scored 15 points in 17 games. Umberger also showed signs of improvement after scoring 28 points in the 2006-07 season, he scored 50 points in the 2007-08 year. And playing with one of the league's premier wingers in Rick Nash will only boost those numbers. Umberger already comes in with much better numbers than center Michael Peca who scored just 34 times last season.
Kristian Huselius is also another huge scoring acquisition. He is a left winger who I expect will be converted to right wing so he can play with Nash. Believe it or not, Huselius has scored as much the last couple seasons than Nash. Huselius scored 66 times last season compared to 69 for Nash. The season before, Huselius scored 77 times compared to 57 for Nash.
Raffi Torres rounds out the new forwards. He is coming of an injury shortened season where he only played 32 games but is likely to score 30-40 times in a season. Only being 27, he is not likely to slow down anytime soon.
“Torres is an experienced NHL player who combines a physical presence with the ability to score goals,” Howson said. “He will also bring to our club the experience of someone who has played deep into the playoffs as he was a significant contributor to Oilers’ run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals.”
What about the forwards? Jan Hejda and Rostislav Klesla will still be key members of the blue line, however there is for the first time in team history depth back there. Mike Commodore, Fedor Tyutin, and Christian Backman all provide something different. The only thing that they have in common is they are between 25-29, and yet again the team didn't rely on getting veterans on their last limb to supply their team with talent. Commodore and Hejda would make an excellent stay at home and shutdown-their-offense pairing. Backman and Tyutin were added because they can quickly move the puck. Don't forget Kris Russell and O.K. Tollefsen.
“All strong teams are built from the backend out and we feel like we made significant strides in that area," Howson said.
So the team has upgraded at every spot, however the Central will be an even more tough division to play in. Chicago could contend this season with all their youth. Detroit is reloading, and doing a good job of it with grabbing Marian Hossa.
I also wanted to touch really quickly on the Destroyers. Doug Kay was recently dismissed as their head coach. Not a surprise after a disappointing 3-13 season following a trip to the Arena Bowl. But one thing that will be missed about Kay is his passion for what Arena Football is about; that is the fans.
After the Destroyers were blown out by the Georgia Force on June 7, many of the players did not want to come out of the locker room for the post game autograph session. Derek Lee sat in his locker with no clothes on and a towel over his head. Kay found out that many members of the team were not on the field. He ran into the locker room and told his players that they had to get out on the field. Within a second, Lee was all of a sudden not in his locker. I still have no idea how (or even if) he got dressed.
I am sure Kay saw the writing on the wall during the final home game on June 14 when the Destroyers lost a tough game to Grand Rapids. That was the infamous Justin Zwick game. After a week of the Destroyers' P.R. types building up Zwick's debut, he came in the second quarter to throw for a 47 yard touchdown. That was all she wrote. Kay put Nagy back into the game only to lose with the offense on the field at the end of the game down by three. Kay obviously always stood behind Nagy, however when asked about Zwick's play, he wanted to give credit to the offensive coordinator.
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