It's been a surprising start to the 2005 baseball season. Brian Roberts has 7 home runs (as of April 23) and is joined on that heady mark in the AL only by perennial slugger Paul Konerko of the White Sox. Meanwhile, Jim Thome has one round-tripper. Speaking of the White Sox, they are off to the best start in team history despite the efforts of manager Ozzie Guillen to disrupt team harmony. Meanwhile, the New York Yankees are battling with the Devil Rays to avoid the basement of the AL East.
Over in the National League, it seems that Paul Tagliabue has taken over as commissioner. Only the Rockies and Pirates seem to stink, though the Brew Crew are starting to give off an odor. The Braves are batting .235 and only the Pirates have scored fewer runs, yet they sit one win out of first in the pitching-rich NL East. Some things never change in baseball, though — Roger Clemens has an ERA of 0.43.
It's way too early to draw conclusions from the first three weeks of baseball, but clearly some teams that came into the 2005 season with high expectations are already questioning how the season is going to play out. It's not panic time in New York, but there is certainly a crisis at Yankee Stadium. With a bloated $200 million plus payroll and an owner that is best described as "defeat-challenged," winning in the Bronx is the only option.
So far this season, winning has been a rarity for the Yankees. They are 7-11, have lost five times to Baltimore, three to Boston, and even once to the D-Rays. Steinbrenner has already spontaneously combusted and issued a "win-or-else" threat.
Steinbrenner didn't specify what the "or else" part of his rant was, but it's hard to figure what he could possibly do except fire Joe Torre. His team has few tradable parts given that most teams could not afford the ludicrous salaries that come with wearing pin stripes. And trading away veterans you've only just signed is hardly the Yankee way.
First off, Steinbrenner should fire Mel Stottlemyre. The Yankees have a team ERA of 5.05, better than only five teams in major league baseball. This is following on from last season's mediocre 4.69 team ERA. Pitching careers have completely collapsed in New York (Javier Vasquez, Jeff Weaver, Kevin Brown) in recent times and Jaret Wright looks likely to be next. Joe likes having comfortably old Mel next to him now that Zimmer is in Tampa, so it's a case of both or neither. Neither is looking increasingly likely as a bemused Torre watches his overpaid charges lose to the likes of the $29 million payroll D-Rays.
Pitching — again — is the Yankees downfall. Randy Johnson, brought in as the stopper and rewarded with a huge contract extension, has (so-far) completely wilted in the heat of the New York media spotlight. He's 1-1 with a 5.13 ERA. Mike Mussina is also 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA. Only Carl Pavano has looked the part, posting a 3.18 ERA and getting little run support.
If you think Mussina and Johnson are having mediocre seasons, take a look at Kevin Brown and Jaret Wright. Brown is 0-2 and in 12 innings has given up 20 hits. His ERA is a dreadful 8.25.
Wright is a more predictable failure than either Weaver or Vasquez were. Wright has never pitched 200 innings in his career and has a season ticket in the doctor's waiting room. He posted good numbers last year in Atlanta under the careful tutelage of Leo Mazzone. Once Stottlemyre got his hands on him, the collapse was almost inevitable. His ERA stands at a shoe sized 9.15.
The worst thing about watching the Yankees is that they clearly are not having fun playing what is essentially a fun game to play. Sure, baseball's a business, but it's also supposed to be fun. It's not the NFL, where you're black and blue every fall Monday. Fear seems the over riding emotion in New York and it's been that way as long as Fearful George has reigned.
It must be soul destroying being a Yankee player unless you are of a certain mental make up. If you win, it's a relief — you were expected to win. If you lose, it's a calamity. The Red Sox won last year and actually looked like they were enjoying playing. Considering they were under the impression the curse was still in place until the unlikely comeback in the ALCS, it was a remarkable effort (and a lesson for New York if they care to heed it) by the Red Sox to stay so loose.
If it's all doom and gloom for the Yankees, it certainly isn't for a few of the more surprising teams currently at heady heights in their respective divisions.
The Chicago White Sox are off to their hottest start since the Nixon Administration, though that has to come with a footnote — they play in the Desperate Division, otherwise known as the AL Central. A team ERA of 3.27 and some decent hitting by Konerko and the surprising Carl Everett has revitalized a flagging franchise. The acquisition of sparkplug lead-off man Scott Posednik is looking a smart move by GM Ken Williams and Joe Crede is finally showing signs of life.
The White Sox will only go as far as their pitching will let them. The rotation isn't spectacular, but Mark Buehrle, Jose Contreras, Orlando Hernandez, Jon Garland, and Freddy Garcia are reliable workhorses for the most part. The bullpen can't settle on a closer, with Shingo Takatsu posting an unacceptable ERA of 9.64 for his five saves. Both Dustin Hermanson and Damaso Marte are looking to take the closers chair. If Takatsu can't settle into his 2004 rhythm, losing either of these useful set up men to the closers role is a blow.
In the National League, the team that has caught the eye early is the Los Angeles Dodgers. Much-criticized GM Paul DePodesta had a tumultuous winter, with Adrian Beltre jumping ship to Seattle and Shawn Green traded to Arizona. Following on from the unpopular late season trade that sent Paul Lo Duca and Guillermo Mota to Florida for Brad Penny and Hee Seop Choi, DePodesta was under the microscope in Southern California. The critics were sharpening their knives waiting for a poor start.
Instead, the Dodgers have jumped off to a 12-5 start and lead the mediocre NL West. Free agent pick-up Derek Lowe has an ERA of 1.27 after four starts and stand in closer Yhency Brazoban has settled down after a poor start and picked up four saves whilst Eric Gagne rehabs.
On offense, the Dodgers are hitting a robust .285 and lead the league in slugging at .463. Jeff Kent may have his limitations with the glove these days, but his bat is holding up, even in spacious pitcher-friendly Dodger stadium. Milton Bradley, so close to being let go in the offseason, has been a revelation, batting .343 with 5 homers and 15 RBIs. After a shocking start, J.D. Drew, brought in from Atlanta for the same money as would have retained Beltre, has shown signs of turning things around.
The problem for Los Angeles is that to make a playoff run, and then to go deep into those playoffs, the pitching has to be more than Lowe and four others. Odalis Perez is a reliable lefty that needs to translate potential to something more concrete. Jeff Weaver has to be more consistent. One game, he'll throw a shutout, then he'll get roughed up and is gone before the fourth. Brad Penny needs to comeback healthy and able to anchor a potentially solid rotation.
Despite their promising starts to the season, I don't expect either the White Sox or the Dodgers to make the World Series. I haven't seen anything yet to convince me that there is a better team in the AL than The Artist Formerly Known as the Anaheim Angels. The owners can mess about with the name of this team as much as they like, but this team has balance. Solid pitching that isn't flashy, but gets the job done and a reliable bullpen allied to some of the best defense in all of baseball totals up to not many runs in the against column. With the bat, any team with Vladimir Guerrero in the lineup has a chance to go all the way. Once Steve Finley gets it going to backup Garret Anderson, this is a team that can run away with the AL West and cause big problems for either New York or Boston in the playoffs.
In the National League, the St Louis Cardinals are still the best-built regular season team. The rotation of Mark Mulder, Jeff Suppan, Chris Carpenter, Jason Marquis, and a revitalized Matt Morris is the deepest in the NL. The pitching staff as a whole sports an ERA of 3.31.
The Cardinals' answer to Guerrero is Albert Pujols. With Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen, the Cardinals have a solid heart of the order. What they will need for the playoffs is another bat, especially if Larry Walker can't turn things around. To beat the best of the American League, Tony LaRussa will need somebody to get on base behind David Eckstein and ahead of the sluggers. If he can find that key edge, this is a team that can go one better than last year.
All said, it's been a great start to the baseball year. The best part of this April so far? Not having to see Barry Bonds' melon head at the plate.
Leave a Comment