Just Doesn't Look Right

On a day that we saw two future Hall of Famers, who combine for over 1100 home runs, change caps, I must say I'm having a hard time dealing with it. Ken Griffey Jr is in his 20th year of Major League service. He spent 11 years with the Seattle Mariners and the last 9 with Cincinnati. Now, Junior takes his act to the South Side of Chicago and back to center field as well.

Manny Ramirez takes the "Manny being Manny" show to LA. Like Griffey, Manny has played for only two teams during his 16-year career, eight each with the Indians and Red Sox. The eccentric slugger will now take orders from Joe Torre. A clash of the titans could be in store as Dodgers third base coach Larry Bowa is notorious for riding guys who don't hustle. It will be interesting to see how the remaining 8 weeks of the season play out.

I'd like to see Griffey get to play in the World Series, but seeing him in black pin stripes is going to take some getting used to.

Gateway to the West

While many have credited the St. Louis Cardinals success this season to manager Tony La Russa, the real reason for their success sits five feet to the right of him on the pine. Not many figured the Cardinals would be players for the National League Central crown when camps broke last Spring. Aside from the model-of-consistency that is Albert Pujols, the Red Birds were full of question marks. The most prominent being: How are we going to find 5 guys to throw in the rotation?

With Chris Carpenter and Mark Mulder sidelined with injury, the outlook looked bleak. So the Cards signed Kyle Lohse as an insurance policy for their dismal rotation. Braden Looper, Joel Piniero and Todd Wellemeyer don't exactly frighten hitters.

Enter Dave Duncan.



With his son roaming around in left field, Duncan has transformed his staff into the '05 ChiSox. They throw deep into games and allow minimal base runners. Kyle Lohse looks less and less like Eric Milton and more and more like Bob Gibson every time he toes the rubber.

Duncan is the only active pitching coach who didn't pitch during his big league career. He caught for the A's, Indians and Orioles and batted only .214. The 62 year old was responsible for the out-of-nowhere resurgence of Jeff Weaver during his teams '06 World Series run. That team however, was equipped with Cy Young winner Chris Carpenter.

With Carpenter scheduled to return in early August, Duncan may get some time off while the Cardinals make the push for the post season. La Russa may get most of the credit, but Duncan's work can be seen nightly in St. Louis. Without him, the Cardinals would be the cellar dwellers everyone expected them to be.

Dutch

I apologize for the poor picture quality (my photog had one too many jager bombs in them), but last week I had the privilege to meet former Philadelphia Phillies catcher Darren Daulton.

"Dutch" as he was commonly referred to as, was one of the nicer professional athletes I've met. He showed off his Florida Marlins '97 World Series ring and reminisced about his favorite characters from the Phillies. We laughed til it hurt as he told story after story of Krukie and Dykstra. One thing I took away from our conversation was how much enjoyment Daulton had as he told his stories. He truly loves the game and had a blast while he was playing.

Retirement looks to have treated Dutchie well. His golden tan and massive physique have not diminished since his playing days have ended. Plug him into any line-up today and he could rake with the best of them...and have a hell of a lot of fun doing it as well.

Bring Back the Juice

How pitiful is tonight's line-up for the State Farm Home Run Derby from Yankee Stadium? The lead-off hitter from the last place team in the AL Central is competing. True, Grady Sizemore is leading the Junior Circuit in four-baggers but come on. If you're going to rid the game of steroids then get rid of the home run derby. Instead, have a sacrifice bunt derby, or a work-the-count-and-draw-a-walk derby. The days of Big Mac and Slammin' Sammy crushing balls out of the stadium are long gone. Major League Baseball should bring back all those suspected steroid users and put them on display.


Official Prediction: Dan Uggla defeats Lance Berkman in the final round, winning a home in Miami for one lucky individual who will then negotiate relocating said home to somewhere where he can draw better.

Exercise in Caution

At the risk of beating a dead horse, I will offer my two cents once again at the impending C.C. Sabathia deal.

Cleveland is overly optimistic that they will be able to re-sign the south paw at season's end. When the '08 campaign commenced, Sabathia was clearly distracted by his possible free agency. He regained his Cy Young winning form since April and has been virtually unhittable in his last 8 starts. The lack-luster Indian offense has been unable to pick him up resulting in a sub .500 record for Sabathia.

So Tribe GM Mark Shapiro is in a belts and suspenders situation. Clearly the Indians have nothing to play for, yet upsetting the fanbase could result in decreased season ticket sales. So while I would like to see a return in top notch pitching prospects from a potential trade partner, the two draft picks Cleveland would acquire by losing Sabathia to free agency could prove to be worth it given the Indians excellent draft history.

A healthy Fausto Carmona and Jake Westbrook could team with Cliff Lee and Aaron Laffey to form a dominant rotation. Increased offense is much more critical, given the Indians needs.

So man up, Mr. Shapiro. Given an inevitable lose-lose situation, exercise caution and prove that no matter what, you are confident in your decision regardless of its analysis from the press. The Eerie Warriors have a tremendous core and while Sabathia's loss would be felt not only on the field but in the locker room, forcing the young athletes to assume more prominent roles may deem beneficial in the long run.