Bleacher Report - Articles by Ben Ernst

Open Mic: The Hargrove retirement and the Yost firing

Ben Ernst — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 15:41:32 -0400

Ok, I know what you're thinking. Mike Hargrove retired from the M's, while Ned Yost was fired by the Brewers. That's the obvious difference to the situation. But the similarities are just as interesting. Yost was canned in the middle of a Brewers playoff race, while Hargrove left in the middle of an eight-game winning streak by a then first-place M's team.

Most of the time, managers don't just leave in the middle of success, especially a manager of the Mariners, who haven't had too much success in recent years. When you look back, there was another big story going on for the Mariners at the time.

The teams' perennial all-star Ichiro Suzuki, was nearing the end of his contract. There were rumblings that the singles master had issues with Hargrove, and that it could interfere with whether or not Ichiro would decide to stay with Seattle.

It seems that Hargrove left so that Ichiro would sign a contract for $100 million over five years to stay with the only North American team he has ever known. Believe it or not, but that is one of the biggest reasons why the pressure to have Hargrove retire is the worst "firings" in M's history.

The Mariners of 2007 were an overachieving team, and the long term contract of Ichiro only pushed GM Bill Bavasi to act like the GM of a team that was one push away from a World Series.

Instead of trading the overvalued Ichiro for a bundle of top-tier prospects, Bavasi went the other way and traded a bundle of prospects, including top prospect Adam Jones for Erik Bedard. We all know how that's worked out for us so far.

Now the Mariners are in a position of having an aging egotistical player with a contract nobody would touch with a 10 foot pole. This is not a place a rebuilding team wants to be, especially after depleting its farm system with the Bedard trade.

So thanks, but no thanks Ichiro and the Mariners brass. Lets just hope the manager of 2009 will be a step in the right direction for this severly damaged organization.

Hank Steinbrenner: Blame the Injuries

Ben Ernst — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 09:22:10 -0400

Injuries happen, folks.

As the Yankees sit behind the rival Red Sox and the once-pitiful Rays, Hank Steinbrenner feels a need to continue to point fingers.

"I think it's very simple, we've been devastated by injuries. No team I've ever seen in baseball has been decimated like this. It would kill any team," Steinbrenner said. "Imagine the Red Sox without Josh Beckett and John Lester. Pitching is 70 percent of the game. Wang won 19 games two straight years. Chamberlain became the most dominating pitcher in baseball. You can't lose two guys like that."

The problem is Hank, every time you point a finger, you have three fingers pointing back at yourself. It's called foresight.

In the offseason, you don't build a team with five starting pitchers. You build a team with at least seven starters, so that you can better handle the injury bug.

One example being the Angels, who traded shortstop Orlando Cabrera to the White Sox for starter John Garland in the offseason. This gave the Angels six very strong starting pitchers. Turns out they needed them, after Kelvim Escobar was dealt possibly a career-ending injury, and ace John Lackey was out for the first month of the season.

After Wang was injured running the bases in an interleague game, the Yanks had vacancy at the top of their rotation, and decided to move Joba Chamberlain to the rotation, basically throwing the "Joba rules" out the window. Turns out those rules were put in place for good reason, as Joba recently went down with shoulder tendonitis.

As for stating that he hasn't seen any team in baseball being this decimated by injuries, my first reaction is to fall over laughing. Besides the aforementioned Angels, the A's, the Cardinals, and probably more teams have been just as devastated or more so by injuries this year.

Suck it up, Hank. The Yankees have done pretty well avoiding the injury bug until this season, so feel fortunate. Injuries are a part of baseball.

Maybe Brian Cashman will remember that this offseason.

Francisco Liriano Called Up from Triple-A

Ben Ernst — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:49:15 -0400

The Phenom has returned.

The Twins have announced that they are calling up starter Francisco Liriano and first baseman Randy Ruiz from Triple-A Rochester. It has been a much-anticipated move.

Liriano will get a chance to prove that he is back to his dominating 2006 form, and will help the Twins realize their hopes for October baseball.

Liriano was 10-2 with a 3.28 ERA with Rochester, and over his last 11 starts he was 10-0 with a 2.67 ERA with 80 strikeouts and only 13 walks. He looks to take the place of Livan Hernandez, who was designated for assignment to create room on the roster.

Ruiz was batting .320 with 17 homers and 68 RBI at the time of his promotion. Outfielder Craig Monroe was designated for assignment to make room for Ruiz.

Seattle Mariners: AL West contenders 2009

Ben Ernst — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:19:25 -0400

The Seattle Mariners have the ability to contend for the 2009 AL West Crown.

There, I said it. I'm sure I won't hear the end of this, especially if the 2008 Mariners return in 2009, or if the GM finally decides to completely overload the organization.

But really, what is so different about this failing team than the one that looked so good on paper before the season? These Mariners don't have the intangibles that make good teams great.

Almost every single player on this Mariners team has underachieved this season, with no statistical explanation. The 2008 M's were just like the Titanic, the seemingly "unsinkable" ship...that sank.

If the Mariners' front office decides to try for contention one last time in 2009, there is a possibility that the real Seattle Mariners team will show up and surprise all of baseball.

Here is a breakdown of the Mariners' current strengths and needs to become the team they should be.

Strengths:

Defense

Relief Pitching

Right Field

Second Base

Third base

Shortstop

#'s 1 and 2 in the rotation

Holes/Weaknesses:

Offense

3-5 of rotation

First Base

Center Field

Left Field

Baserunning

Leadership

Players such as Frank Thomas and Mike Sweeney would be good low-risk, high-reward acquisitions for the M's, and although they may be drawn to big names such as Mark Texieria, Ben Sheets, and CC Sabathia, they would more than likely cost upwards of $20 million a year for five-plus years on their contracts, something the Mariner's do not want to be stuck with if they decide to throw in the towel and rebuild.

The front office should stick with trades. Not for high-profile players like they did with Erik Bedard, but for players of equal value, and deal from a position of strength.

The M's have a surplus of catchers, and seem to always have strong relief pitchers in their bullpen. Players such as Kenji Johjima, Jaimie Burke, Rob Johnson (AAA), and Jeremy Reed would be attractive pieces to other teams.

Teams like the Red Sox looking for a replacement for Jason Varitek, or a fourth outfielder in Reed, could be used to bring in a solid bat or starter to fill the vacancy of Jarrod Washburn.

The Mariners also need to start relying more on youth, and giving them a chance to play everyday could hopefully pay off. Wlademir Balentien showed power during his callup earlier in the season, but displayed the power that makes him an attractive prospect.

Back at Triple-A, where he can play everyday, Balentien seems to have rediscovered his stroke, and should be the frontrunner to get the job in left field after Ibanez departs via free agency. Top catching prospect Jeff Clement will get alot of playing time for the rest of this season, and next year should be the starting catcher with Burke as his backup.

If the Mariners can fill the vacancies at DH, first base, and center field, and bring players aboard who can fill the leadership role, i have faith that this time the Titanic won't sink.

Oakland A's Trade Rumors: Huston Street up Next?

Ben Ernst — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 07:43:17 -0400

Billy Beane ain't done yet, folks.

Rumors have sprung up that teams like the Brewers and White Sox are looking to add the A's talented young closer, Huston Street.

The Brewers seem to be the best fit—they are looking for a consistent pitcher to fill the closer's role that has been a revolving door for the Brew Crew. Brewers GM Doug Melvin has also shown a willingness to trade away prospects to win now, as evidenced by his trade for Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia and, more recently, the trade for the Giants' Ray Durham.

Melvin also has a very deep farm system to work with, and seems to be a perfect trading partner for the rebuilding A's.

The White Sox already have a very strong bullpen, but Beane and White Sox GM Kenny Williams have been frequent trade partners, and a player such as young third baseman Josh Fields may interest Beane. Acquiring Street would make an already formidable Sox bullpen into arguably the most dominant relief corps in the majors.

The A's already have many young arms in the 'pen to take Street's place, such as Santiago Castilla or veteran Alan Embree. In the past, Beane has been known to think of closers as overvalued commodities, and that any pitcher who can throw a clean inning can fill the role.

Beane has had closers such as Jason Isringhausen and Keith Foulke, who both left as free agents, and Billy Koch, who was traded to the White Sox for, you guessed it, Keith Foulke.

The surprise about Street was that Beane had signed him to a contract extension, something rarely given to members of the A's, much less to a closer.

This season, Street has an ERA of 4.19 and 17 saves in 22 opportunities, with a WHIP of 1.16.

Billy Beane and the Art of the Deadline Deal

Ben Ernst — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 05:02:07 -0400

What comes to your mind when you think of the trade deadline? Buyers? Sellers? Hopes for playoff contention? Building for the future?

More often than not, the words that enters many a GM's minds during this time of year is impatience, or desperation.

Just ask the New York Yankees, who have vowed to restructure the organization around strong scouting and drafting, and utilizing the deepest pockets in baseball, keep any and all of their burgeoning stars for as long as they wish, along with complementing them with the usual big-name free agents.

This, they hope, will make the Yankees about as close as they can get to becoming a "perfect organization."

But, after GM Brian Cashman showed restraint this offseason by not trading any of his top-three pitching prospects for arguably the best pitcher in the game, the Yankee fans have started to get nervous. Especially after being in the unusual position of third place in the AL East at the All-Star break.

They've been calling for Cashman to bring in Matt Holiday, CC Sabathia, or anybody that would save the Yankees from having a mediocre season. So far, it seems, Cashman is holding firm, but even if his plan for the future does seem possible, how long will it take until the Steinbrenner family, and Yankee fans, run him out of town?

On the other side of the spectrum, and the other side of the country, Oakland Athletic's GM Billy Beane isn't feeling pressured at all. From the past offseason up to this point, the A's have deemed four different pitchers as their team's ace, and not necessarily because of performance.

Beane first traded ace Dan Haren to the Diamondbacks, Rich Harden to the Cubs, and recently Joe Blanton to the Phillies. This isn't anything out of the ordinary for Beane, who is best known for trading two of his big-three starting pitchers during the 2004 season while the A's were still playoff contenders.

Because of their shallow pockets, the A's have been playing the way Cashman wants, but because of their low budget, cannot keep their players around with long-term deals. Year after year, they've seen homegrown players go to other teams, such as Jason Giambi to the Yankees or Barry Zito to the Giants.

This is why Beane is known as a magician for making trades. Using his Moneyball technique of finding undervalued players, Beane has brought in players such as Jermaine Dye, Johnny Damon, Jason Isringhousen, Keith Foulke, Billy Koch, Chad Bradford, and countless more.

Seeing some of these names now may make you cringe and wonder why they are so special, but when you think of many of these players started, you think back to the A's.

Many of them left via free agency to wealthier teams (Dye, Damon, Isringhousen, Bradford, Foulke), while Koch was traded for, put in as a closer and compiled a few nice seasons, then was traded away for Foulke, who, in turn, was put in the closers role and had a few nice seasons before becoming a free agent, giving the A's two first-round draft picks.

Now to the present.

Beane has traded away Rich Harden and Chad Gaudin to the Cubs for four prospects, and Blanton to the Phillies for three prospects. With the A's in a rebuilding process and aiming to re-surge when they move into their new stadium in a few years, these players would have become free agents and moved on by the time the stadium is built.

Though most of the players Beane received in the trades do not seem like anything to be hyped about, remember that most of the previously named players Beane has brought in were once undervalued by teams. The Cubs and Phillies are both playoff hopeful, but are being pushed by other teams, and their GMs believed that they needed a few extra players to help them push for October.

Harden, who has been plagued by injuries for most of his career, had finally been able to string a relatively long stretch of starts together, but because an injury could occur at any time, his trade value was as high as Beane could hope for. The Cub's divisional rival Brewers had just brought in the A.L.'s strikeouts leader, and reigning Cy Young winner, CC Sabathia.

Cubs GM Jim Hendry needed to make a deal, and his impatience was there, due to the gain in talent by his rivals. Beane seemed to have received the players he wanted in this deal, which is all he can hope for.

Blanton is almost a complete reverse story of Harden. He has the label of being durable, rarely missing a start, and being consistent. This year though, Blanton was having one of the worst years of his career, with an ERA just below five, and a W-L record magnified by the lack of run support.

The Phillies, desperate for pitching, traded their second best prospect, along with two questionable players. Though Blanton was having a poor year and his trade value was at its lowest, Beane could not afford to hope that he would have a strong second half and have stronger value in the offseason.

The reason Beane made this deal was because of the Phillies desperation, and due to the high price of pitchers, could not afford any higher quality starter on the market.

At the present time, these deals look like fair trades or even leaning away from the A's, but when a trade factors in a magician like Billy Beane, only time will tell.

Was Letting Jose Guillen Go the Root of the Seattle Mariners' Problems?

Ben Ernst — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:00:04 -0400

Where did it all go wrong, Mariners' fans?

We had a top prospect in Adam Jones going into right field, adding some speed and much needed youth into the lineup.

We had one of the best starting rotations on paper in the league, also known as King Felix and the innings-eaters. Also joining Felix was former Cy Young candidate Erik Bedard, to take pressure off of young Hernandez as the ace of the staff.

We had one of the strongest bullpens in baseball, with All-Star J.J. Putz, and young flamethrower Brandon Morrow setting him up, along with a cast of young consistent relievers. Even Arthur Rhodes was back, trying to help the team get back to the glory days of the early 2000s.

Richie Sexon was expected to rebound from his disappointing year in 2007 and was dubbed by then manager John Mclaren as the future Comeback Player of the Year winner.

Adrian Beltre had won the Gold Glove award for his stellar defense, and he and Kenji Johjima had been steadily improving every year on offense. This year looked like Johjima could push for his first All-Star bid.

The young double-play combo of Yuniesky Betancourt and Jose Lopez had another year under their belts and they were improving in every aspect of their game.

But somewhere, something made this team greatly underachieve. It doesn't seem possible that almost every member of the Mariners' 25-man roster could simultaneously have poor years.

They have the pitching, they have just enough offense, they have stellar defense. But, they don't have one intangible thing. Leadership.

The arm of Erik Bedard is a strong tool on the field, but he is soft spoken and is no leader. Ichiro leads by example, but he won't get in your face and tell you if you are doing well or poor. Ibanez is of the same breed. Nobody will vocally inspire others and take charge of the team.

Where did that voice go from last year? It signed with the Royals.

Just like Derek Jeter, Many Ramirez, and retired ex-Mariner great Jay Buhner, Jose Guillen brought the intangibles to the 2007 Mariners. Guillen had the label of being a controversial player who was very vocal with his concerns and rubbed some of his managers the wrong way. In saying that, he came into the Mariners' clubhouse uncontested for leadership.

He would get the players' adrenaline pumping and bring a feeling of unity to the team. But now that he is gone, the quiet Mariners are being just that, quietly playing as the biggest disappointment of 2008.

My fearless prediction for 2009. The Mariner's bring in leadership, or they will suffer just as much as their 2008 counterparts.

Player Profile: Justin Duchscherer

Ben Ernst — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 10:59:54 -0400

The Oakland A's must feel pretty good about Justin Duchscherer's transition from the bullpen to the starting rotation. The reliever-turned starter leads the Majors with a 1.82 ERA at the All-Star break, along with 10 wins, and he has become the A's ace starting pitcher with the departure of Rich Harden.

The rest of the league must have felt pretty good about Duchsherer's performance, because he was selected to this year's All-Star team. Justin isn't going into completely unfamiliar territory, in fact he made it as an All-Star back in 2005, as a reliever.

He was a virtual unknown to many fans in baseball besides A's fans who watched him dominate AL hitting for the first half of the year. In fact, even though he was the only pitcher in the bullpen that wasn't a closer, he had the second-best ERA of the group, with his 1.49 ERA just below that of Yankees closer Mariano Rivera (1.01).

Now as a starter, his ERA will be the lowest of every starter that attends this All-Star game.

"Duke" relies on his pinpoint control, and a painfully slow curve ball that averages around 70 mph.

Duchsherer was originally a starter in the minors, and even though he was carving up minor leaguers, the A's at the time were stacked at the big league level with the Big Three starters.

With a rotation of Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Barry Zito, young phenom Rich Harden, and veteran Mark Redman in the rotation, Justin was pushed to the bullpen. Now that none of the Big Three remain, the A's have room in their rotation for Duke.

He hasn't disappointed this year, turning in a performance that would make the Big Three proud. Now that Harden has been traded, Duchsherer is now the ace of the rotation, just as he was the go-to guy in the bullpen.

If the A's decide to continue the rebuilding process this offseason, Duke could be an extremely attractive trading chip for GM Billy Beane, who is obviously not afraid to trade talented pitchers.

Since Duke has become a fixture on the A's, Beane has traded almost every ace starting pitcher he has had. Names like Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Dan Haren, and his latest victim Harden have fueled the A's seemingly constant rebuilding process.

But, if the A's decide that they can compete, you can be sure that Duke will be a huge part of the A's plans to retake the AL West.

Seattle Mariners: It's Ttime For a Firesale

Ben Ernst — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 11:34:59 -0400

This is not how we wanted things to happen.

The Mariners are mired in a season-long slump, and there doesn't seem to be a way out of it. Our problem is that most of our tradable players don't have high trading stock. Each player's season is mirrored by our record and position in the west.

But, as we've seen time and time again, players that we trade away suddenly blossom into the players we hoped they would become (see Jason Varitek, Derek Lowe).

Here are some of the potentially tradable pieces of the Mariner's major-league roster:

Adrian Beltre

The Gold Glover is having a decent year, with 16 bombs and 47 RBI, but a relatively low batting average of .259. His contract is on the heavy side, but the M's might be willing to take a chunk of it on if the right deal comes along.

Raul Ibanez

Ibanez is in the final year of his contract, and he could be a strong pickup as a DH or left fielder. He's having a strong year offensively, with 11 homers, and he's leading the M's with 55 RBI. He also has a decent average of .273. He could definitely help a team like the Mets for the playoff stretch.

Kenji Johjima

This may just be in the best interest of the Mariners, who have prospect Jeff Clement at the major-league level and getting the bulk of the catching duties. Johjima's contract is too big for him to be a bench player, and even though he is underachieving offensively, a team with deep pockets like the Red Sox may take a chance on him and hope he heats up.

Erik Bedard

Seattle fans are going to call for Bavasi's head if Bedard is traded for anything less than what the M's paid for him in the offseason, but the fact of the matter is that he is under performing, and if the team goes into rebuilding mode, he would be an attractive trade piece.

Rumor has it that he has problems with the management, and suddenly he said he can't throw over 100 pitches per outing, which makes him a good candidate to be traded to a contender that is craving pitching, possibly the Cardinals or Phillies.

Jarrod Washburn

Don't be scared off by his ERA or W-L record, Washburn seems to be coming into his own as of late. He's strung together six quality outings in his last seven starts, the other start he went eight innings, giving up four runs.

He's in the last year of his contract, so a team might want to grab hold of the lefty and hope his streak continues.

Arthur Rhodes

Though he has not been mentioned in trade rumors, the veteran lefty has been solid for the M's this year, though not getting many opportunities with Sean Green leading the majors in appearances for a relievers.

Rhodes has a cheap contract, and might be a good alternative to the more publicized lefty relievers such as Brian Fuentes and Damaso Marte. Look for teams who lose out on either reliever to possibly turn to Rhodes.

If the Mariners go all out and decide to blow up their roster, look for only Felix Hernandez, and possibly Brandon Morrow, to stay

Seattle Mariners: Where is the Mojo Madness?

Ben Ernst — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 12:12:52 -0400

"Sodo Mojo," "Two outs, so what?"

Slogans like these helped fuel the cheers at Safeco Field back when the Mariners astounded the baseball world and matched the single-season record of 116 wins, a record that had been untouched since it was set by the Cubs in 1906.

As a devout young fan at the age of 11, I relied on a slogan such as "Two outs, so what?" every time the Mariners offense found themselves with only one out left in an inning, just to keep my hopes up. Oftentimes, my prayers would be answered by the 2001 Mariners, and there came a feeling among fans that this team could do no wrong.

So where is the Mojo Madness now? Ever since the Mariners began their descent to the AL West cellar, the fans have lost that seemingly unwavering faith in their team. They've grown accustomed to the sight of Richie Sexon missing yet another pitch for strike three, seeing another hopeful rally killed by a double play.

It is tough to be a Mariners fan this year, but let's not forget that it's even harder to be a member of the Seattle Mariners. Many fans have gotten so fed up that they are booing members of their own team, in their own ballpark. It is easy to forget that Sexson came to the M's and earned his paycheck for his first two years, often using his 6'10" frame to carry the offense for weeks at a time.

We fans need to help bring back that feeling, that energy, that was palpable at Safeco during the 2000 and 2001 seasons. Let's not give the impression that we are a bandwagon fan base, only supporting our team when it wins.

We fans can create a very powerful and exciting environment in the stadium when we are on our feet, cheering until J.J. Putz or Brandon Morrow can shut the door and give us the victory. Seldom does the team let us down when we are there supporting them.

So let's bring back the energy, the Mojo, and hopefully, one day, the division.