Eric Chavez was moved to the 60 day DL, meaning we may not see much, if anything, of him this season.

Billy Beane’s “Bargain Buys”, Vol. I

It did not take long for Billy Beane and the Oakland Athletics to jump on the opportunity to get Frank Thomas for a prorated minimum salary ($337,000 of $390,000). Thomas rejoins the Oakland A’s, who have been in desperate need of a power bat. The timing seems perfect as the A’s just shipped 1B Dan Johnson to Tampa Bay who claimed him off the waiver wire. The signing of Thomas also eliminates another issue; there is now one less avenue available for Barry Bonds to rejoin baseball. The Bay area has been home to Bonds for years and a lot of talk and ink in the off-season was dedicated to predictions on whether or not the A’s would try and fill seats with Barry Bonds in an A’s uniform.  The last time that Thomas wore the green and gold, it was 2006, and he was a major reason the team had such a great playoff run, and became the A.L.West Champions. Should you expect 39 home runs and 114 runs batted in from Thomas, like he hit back in 2006?  No. But there is no reason he can’t hit 30 dingers and drive in 90 or so runs.  There is one thing that most folks agree on when it comes to Thomas, and that is that he will stay with the A’s until he finally retires.

Tens Everywhere!

The fabled Chicago Cubs walked away from last night’s game tired, finally winning their 10,000th game. It took the Cubbies 10 different batters, 10 innings, to win their 10,000th game played over the Colorado Rockies.

There were some great quotes on ChicagoSports.com<!--[endif]--> including Ryan Theriot’s, “It was a tough 10,000 wins, I hope the next 10,000 are easier,” and Kerry Woods’, “Really, I didn’t remember the first 9,000.”

Many are excited about the Cubs 15-6 start and with good reason; they are really playing with a chip on their shoulder, and getting it done with a combination of strong pitching, heavy lumber from Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez, and balanced defense and plate discipline from Mark DeRosa and Ryan Theriot.

Billy Beane’s “Bargain Buys”, Vol. II

Before Billy Beane brought big Frank Thomas to the Bay area, the Moneyball manager grabbed another player off waivers.  This time he did go for an ex-Giant, speedy outfielder Rajai Davis. With the loss of Travis Buck, the team had need of an outfielder. Davis has been projected to steal upwards of 30 bases this season but saw his playing time dwindle considerably over the past two weeks, as rookie, Fred Lewis, has been red hot. If Davis can fix his lack of plate discipline, this could be an absolute steal for the A’s, pardon the pun. In other Athletics’ news, third baseman Eric Chavez was transferred to the 60 day disabled list, all but ensuring that we’ll get no more than half of a season from the once perennial all-star, if he ever gets healthy enough to play.

Help Me Obi Wan Kenobe, You are my only hope!

Johan Santana has gone from elite pitcher to savior in New York in a matter of weeks. With the aging veterans on the disabled list, and a group of young gunslingers running around without much run support; It is becoming more obvious that the signing of Santana is sustaining hope, as the team tries to pull it together, even if it may have depleted the farm system.  Young pitchers John Maine, Mike Pelfrey, and Nelson Figueroa are able to look to Santana for leadership and direction, while Oliver Perez has been able to hold his own for the first time in his career. There is no doubt that while the team awaits the fates of both Pedro Martinez and Orlando Hernandez, the team’s fate has been placed solely on the arm of Santana. Will he continue to dominate hitters and be the strength of the pitching rotation? Will he be able to withstand the scrutiny that comes with playing at Shea stadium if the team is losing? Ultimately, Yes. He has proven that he can perform regardless of where he is pitching. Let us not forget that he played for the Twins organization when the Twins almost become extinct themselves.

The Tigers Wake Up Against Texas

Apparently, the Tigers are ready to come out of their spring training funk and drive in some runs. The Texas Rangers committed the ultimate error, waking a sleeping lion, or in this case, Tiger. With the return of starting center fielder, Curtis Granderson, the team stepped up to the plate to defend their honor, and live up to everyone’s lofty expectations, by absolutely shelling Texas pitching along the way by plating 37 runs in three games. One other note, the Tigers bullpen, which was deemed the area most needing assistance, was impeccable, as Clay Rapada pitched 1 ½ innings, striking out two with no runs, Aquilina Lopez added three scoreless innings while striking out three, then handed it to Jason Grilli for a 1-2-3 ninth inning. Not bad for a group that was supposed to be the weakest link in the chain.

Fun Fact: The last time the Tigers put up an 11-run inning was exactly four years ago to the day, April 23, 2004, against the Cleveland Indians.

That is my view of the world of MLB, and this is THE GRUMBLE.

Kevin Burgoyne, aka Statistocrat