MLB Power Rankings Week 21: The Legendary Lou Piniella Says Goodbye
Last month, Lou Piniella told the Cubs he would be retiring at season's end. Well apparently he got sick of watching the Cubs get beaten to a bloody pulp. Sunday's 16-5 loss was his last game as a manger. He leaves as one of the greatest managers of all time. Unfortunately he went out on a bad note. The Cubs have been a major disappointment, and not even the legendary Piniella could save them. Sweet Lou should be in the Hall of Fame in five years. He cited the need to be with his ailing mother as the main reason for his early departure.
The other big news was about a former player. Roger Clemens might be going to jail! Did you just grin reading that statement? People from around the country (especially in Boston) have despised the egomaniac for years and this might be karma. He had plenty of opportunities for a plea bargain, but the stubborn Clemens thought he could beat it. Stay tuned, this story is just beginning to heat up.
On the field the Reds are red hot, the Dodgers are dead, the Braves continue to fend of the pesky Phillies and the Twins take a firm grip on the AL Central. The dog days of summer are providing plenty of excitement and storylines.
30. Pittsburgh Pirates
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Arggggh. The Pirates are awful. How awful? On top of having the worst record in the majors, they have been outscored by 242 runs. That's 58 more than the next biggest differential.
It gets even better for the worst franchise in pro sports...
With their loss on Friday night, the Pirates clinched their 18th consecutive season with a losing record, extending their own North American pro sports record.
29. Baltimore Orioles
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Manny Machado, the club’s top pick in June’s amateur draft agreed to a $5.25M deal three minutes before Monday’s midnight deadline. Experts believe he would be one of the hardest first-round picks to sign.
I was pretty excited the deal got done,” said Machado, an 18-year-old shortstop out of Miami. “But all through the process, I’ve had an idea what I was going to do.”
Kevin Millwood made his 400th career start on Sunday. He’ll be one of seven active pitchers to reach the milestone. Philadelphia’s Jamie Moyer leads all active pitchers with 628 starts. The other five pitchers (Andy Pettitte, Livan Hernandez, Tim Wakefield, Javier Vazquez and Jeff Suppan) have not gotten to 500 starts.
“I haven’t really thought anything about it,” said Millwood, 35. “It is definitely a cool thing, being able to stay around that long to get that many starts. To have somebody allow you to get that many starts is definitely a big honor, to reach that milestone.”
28. Seattle Mariners
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A few streaks were broken this week for the last place Mariners.
Ichiro Suzuki, who hadn't homered in 229 at-bats since June 19th, blasted two bombs off Javier Vazquez in his first two at-bats at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.
It's been 12 years since a player has ended such a long homer-less streak with back-to-back jacks.That would be San Diego shortstop Chris Gomez, who went 374 homerless at-bats over 1997 and 1998 until breaking the streak with a pair off Todd Stottlemyre.
Russell Branyan hit a three-run home run off A.J. Burnett in the first inning on Friday night. Entering the game, Branyan was hitless in his last 25 at-bats with runners in scoring position, which was the longest current streak among all major-league players.
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27. Cleveland Indians
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Playing out the string, the Indians had lost two-of-three in the last four series. They must of gotten sick of the trend and decided to just let the Tigers sweep them over the weekend.
The Indians rallied for five runs in the eighth inning and two in the ninth to post a 7-3 victory at Kansas City. It was Cleveland's first road win after trailing by as many as five runs in the eighth inning or later since a 15-13 win in the same building in 2006. In fact, the Indians' last three such road wins have all come at Kauffman Stadium. Somehow they were able to win despite five errors.
26. Arizona Diamondbacks
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How desperate are the D-Backs for pitching?
Saturday they signed veteran left-hander Mike Hampton to a minor league deal. Hampton will go to Triple-A Reno and might join the team in September as a reliever, interim general manager Jerry Dipoto said.
“We’re going to find out what Mike has in the tank,” Dipoto said. “He’s just rehabbed off a shoulder procedure this past September. He came out and threw for us this week and looked very good. He looked quite a lot like Mike Hampton normally looks.”
Hampton, 37, made 21 starts last season with Houston, collecting a 5.30 ERA in 112 innings. He has a 4.07 ERA in his 15-year career but has struggled to stay off the D.L. the past six seasons.
Hampton had surgery in September to repair a rotator cuff tear and partial damage to his labrum.
“He’s a bulldog,” Dipoto said. “He’s a gamer. His internal wiring really sets up well for a bullpen (role). I think he can bring our team just as much on the days he’s not pitching as on the days he will.”
25. Kansas City Royals
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Yuniesky Betancourt has been a Royals for more than a year now. He has played over 180 games if you’re keeping track.
Betancourt is 28 and set to make $4M next season. And by many basic statistics, he’s having one of the best offensive seasons of his career.
He already has a career-high 11 homers. He’s on pace for 32 doubles. And his .418 slugging percentage would be tied for the highest of his career.
He does have a few issues that need to be fixed. He’s walked just 12 times all season (second-lowest total in baseball among players with enough at-bats to qualify for the batting title). His on-base percentage is .288—the sixth-worst in baseball.
He hit his third grand slam of the season this week which ties him for first in the majors.
24. Washington Nationals
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Stephen Strasburg's right arm has been discussed quite a bit of late.
Washington general manager Mike Rizzo said the team will wait for results of an MRI exam on Strasburg before deciding what to do with their injured right-hander.
Strasburg strained a tendon in his forearm in Saturday night's start against the Phillies. Strasburg went through his normal post-start workout Sunday, but did not throw.
Manager Jim Riggleman said it was "probably safe to say" Strasburg would miss his next start. Rizzo said there would be no decision until the MRI exam was completed.
There is a chance that Starsburg might not throw another pitch for the Nationals in 2010.
23. Chicago Cubs
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Lou Pinella has managed his last game. One of the great baseball guys has had enough. Piniella, 66, appeared in 1,747 games as a major leaguer, another 693 as a minor leaguer.
He has a World Series ring as the manager of the 1990 "wire-to-wire" Cincinnati Reds. He also has a full highlight reel of arguments with umpires in his 23 seasons as a manager.
The idea was to have the storybook ending. Sweet Lou would lead the Cubs to their first championship in over 100 years. Instead the Cubs aged Lou 20 years. The team has been a massive failure and the last game Lou managed was a perfect example, a 16-5 loss.
"Today's game wasn't pretty," Piniella said, choking up. "But I'd rather reflect on the good times I had here. Lot of good times, lot of good people. It's been a lot of fun."
"I cried a little bit after the game," he said as the tears came down his cheeks. "I get emotional. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be. This will be the last time I put on a uniform. It's been very special to me."
22. Houston Astros
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Michael Bourn has hit .218 since the All-Star break, which has lowered his average to .246. More important to a leadoff hitter is on-base percentage, and Bourn’s .320 is 10 points below average for leadoff hitters.
He sat down with manager Brad Mills last week to watch film on bunting with the idea that more bunts might get him going.
“It’s a situation where his legs are one of the biggest tools he has,” Mills said. “Any way a guy can incorporate the tools that he has into the game that he plays and how he goes about it (helps).”
Brian Moehler will fly back to Houston to set off on the next segment of his groin rehab.
Moehler will throw a bullpen session Monday in Houston and then make a start for AAA with a 60-pitch limit. If that goes well, he’ll be back with the Astros in Philadelphia.
The righthander, who has been used in the rotation and the bullpen, has been out since July 7th with a groin strain.
21. Oakland Athletics
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Conor Jackson returned to the disabled list Friday because of a lower abdominal strain. The left fielder is feeling the pain both physically and mentally.
"It's borderline embarrassing," Jackson said. He has dealt with the abdominal problem since March and hoped he "could play with it until October."
On Monday, Jackson returned from a month-and-a-half stint on the disabled list because of a strained right hamstring. The A's acquired Jackson from Arizona on June 15th. He has played only 18 games, hitting .228.
The A's have three men (Rajai Davis, Coco Crisp and Cliff Pennington) with at least 20 stolen bases for the first time since 1992 (Rickey Henderson, Willie Wilson and Lance Blankenship).
Jerry Blevins recorded the final three outs to secure a victory for Trevor Cahill. The A's bullpen has never blown a potential win for Cahill, whose 23 career victories include only one complete game. Oakland's relievers have gone 22-for-22 in turning inherited leads into wins for Cahill and the A's.
20. Milwaukee Brewers
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Reliever LaTroy Hawkins will have surgery Friday in Los Angeles to determine why his shoulder has bothered him throughout the 2010 season.
Hawkins said the recovery time will be three months if it is only a cleanout procedure. If there has to be repairs, it could be longer.
"I've got some fraying in the rotator cuff and the labrum needs a cleanup," said Hawkins. "It's always wear and tear (in a pitcher's shoulder). He said some pitchers can pitch with it and some can't."
Hawkins went on the DL with shoulder weakness in early May and briefly returned in July. He made five appearances before the shoulder started bothering him again and it was back to the DL for Hawkins.
Hawkins signed a two-year, $7.5M contract with the Brewers last winter. He has appeared in only 18 games this season, going 0-3 with an 8.44 ERA. Tough luck for the Brew Crew.
19. Florida Marlins
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The Giants have won a waiver claim for Cody Ross, according to two major league sources, but it remains to be seen whether the Marlins outfielder leaves or stays. It's very possible that the Giants, who do not have a need for an outfielder, put in the claim to block the Padres from snagging him.
The Marlins are not too happy with Ronny Paulino, who was hit with a 50-game suspension for violating the league's drug policy. But expect him to be back for the Marlins next season.
There are several factors that could lead to his return in 2011. He will likely come cheaper than he did this season for $1.1M, $272,000 of which he loses to the suspension.
The Marlins don't have any catchers of note within the farm system. And who knows what's up with John Baker, who has missed most of the season.
18. Los Angeles Angels
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The Los Angeles Angels placed infielder Maicer Izturis on the 15-day disabled list for the third time this year and recalled flame thrower reliever Jordan Walden from AAA on Sunday.
Walden, 22, is the hardest throwing pitcher in the Angels' system, with a fastball that has been clocked as high as 102 mph. The Angels converted the 6'5" 240-pound right-hander to relief work this year. He pitched a scoreless inning in his debut against the Twins on Sunday.
On August 18th last year, the Angels fielded a lineup with every player hitting at least .300. It was the first time in nearly 75 years a team had pulled that off so late in a season. This year? They have a grand total of two guys (Alberto Callaspo and Torii Hunter) hitting above .270.
17. New York Mets
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The Mets will be using a rookie for the majority of their catching duties. Josh Thole will catch the bulk of the team's remaining games and after Rod Barajas was picked up by the Dodgers on a waiver claim Sunday.
"If I'm going to have a chance to catch every day, awesome," Thole said. "If I'm going to be the left-handed bat off the bench, awesome, too. I'm ready. I've been working with all the starters in the bullpen developing good relationships with all the guys."
Barajas, 34, started off with a bunch of home-runs, launching bombs nine times in his first 82 at-bats. However, his production nose-dived as the season progressed. Overall he hit .225 with 12 homers and 34 RBI in 249 at-bats.
The offense certainly needs some sort of spark. The Mets have scored 46 runs in August, fewest in the majors. Since the All-Star break, the Mets are hitting .225, also last in the majors.
16. Detroit Tigers
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Manager Jim Leyland said he is doubtful that Magglio Ordoñez (broken right ankle) will return this season.
This will be the fifth-straight year that the Tigers have a worse record in the season's second half than in the first. Is it time to place some of the blame on their manager?
Leyland's numbers before joining the Tigers:
First-half winning percentage: .492.
Second-half winning percentage: .479.
Certainly injuries were a huge factor, but the numbers don't lie. Then again it could just be a fluke. An oddity that has Tiger fans wondering...
15. Los Angeles Dodgers
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Vin Scully announced his return to the radio booth for one more season in 2011. It will be his 62nd year calling Dodger games.
"The game of baseball is something I love with all my heart and soul," Scully said. "I felt deep within the recesses of my mind that I did not want to sever the relationship. I just love it so much. It's like a very good marriage. My wife, God bless her, said, 'If you want to do it, do it.' "
The Dodgers optioned catcher A.J. Ellis to Triple-A Albuquerque after acquiring veteran catcher Rod Barajas from the Mets on a waiver claim to be the main catcher for the rest of the season with Russell Martin on the disabled list.
Manny Ramirez is back. In his first game back he went 0-3 with two strikeouts. Still shaking off that rust.
14. Toronto Blue Jays
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Lyle Overbay had four hits, two homers and seven runs batted in for the Blue Jays on Friday night. Only one other player in Blue Jays history had at least four hits, two homers and seven ribbies in one game: Roy Howell, who went 5-for-6 with two homers and nine runs batted in on Sept. 10, 1977 at Yankee Stadium.
In his past two starts, Jays lefty Marc Rzepczynski has had a new delivery where in his windup he takes the ball out of his glove much quicker than he used to. It’s something that he has been working on with minor-league pitching coach Dave LaRoche.
Random question...why do all home Blue Jay games start at 7:07? Only team in the majors that does this.
13. Colorado Rockies
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It was an emotional week for the Rockies. Clubhouse favorite Brad Hawpe was released by the team. Hawpe was hitting a mere .255 and had only knocked in 37 runs in 259 plate appearances. It's expected that Hawpe will be picked up by a contending team shortly.
The Rockies' 25-40 road record is killing them. The bats fell asleep and the pitching crumbled. They have a whopping total of eight runs in their last six road games.
After waiting for another late season hot streak, the writing is on the wall. The Rockies are nothing more than an average team with one great pitcher. Time to play the youngsters and see what the future holds in Denver.
12. Chicago White Sox
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A 2-4 trip was a huge disappointment for manager Ozzie Guillen, who unleashed his anger Sunday after the White Sox' 3-2 loss to the Royals.
"A very horse(bleep) road trip," Guillen said. His team was 1-for-10 effort with runners in scoring position on Sunday.
"Disappointing, my (bleeping) ass. Disappointing for (bleeping) managers that have patience. Very bad road trip."
Why don't you tell us how you really feel, Ozzie?
All-Star left-handed reliever Matt Thornton admitted he has soreness in his left forearm that could mean a trip to the DL.
"It's one of those things where you've got to wait and see how it reacts to everything," Thornton said Sunday. "Right now, it's not bouncing back good."
Thornton said his forearm has bothered him since at least Tuesday, when he gave up a game-winning home run to the Twins' Jim Thome.
11. St. Louis Cardinals
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New acquisition Pedro Feliz could make the Cards a LOT better by hitting like he did for the Phillies last season, but that is an unrealistic expectation. He is 35 years old. He has had a terrible offensive season for the Astros, who play in a hitter-friendly park.
The Cards have relied heavily on the dynamic duo of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright throughout the '10 season.
The Cardinals are 37-15 in games started by Carpenter-Wainwright. Carpenter-Wainwright is 20-3 at Busch Stadium this season, with Wainwright going 11-0, 1.22 and Carpenter going 10-3, 2.85.
Carpenter-Wainwright is 36-6 against NL Central opponents in the past two seasons. Carpenter is 17-3 and Wainwright is 19-3.
Too bad they can't pitch every game for the struggling Cardinals. They lost five in a row this week and find themselves 3.5 games behind the first-place Reds.
10. San Francisco Giants
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Chris Ray was crushed for four runs in the eighth inning of Tuesday's loss to the Phillies. He was placed on the DL the very next day. Ray said he has had pain in his right side for about a week, but it did not affect his pitching until Tuesday.
Jeremy Affeldt comes off the DL 3 1/2 weeks after tearing his left oblique while warming up in the bullpen in Arizona. He has allowed two runs in two innings since his return. The Giants will need him to return to last year's form if they want a shot at the postseason.
They also need Tim Lincecum to pitch much better. He has a 0-4 record and a 8.38 ERA in the month of August. His control has been the issue and hopefully the coaches can help him out. If not, the Giants postseason dreams will be shattered.
9. Texas Rangers
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The Rangers have finished their AL East gauntlet to mediocre results. They split a two-game series against the Yanks, won two-of-three from the Red Sox, were swept by the Rays and split a four game set with the O's.
Does this mean that the Rangers aren't going to do any damage in the playoffs? Hard to say but this stretch wasn't exactly promising. They have another opportunity to beat the elite when the Twins come to town this week.
8. Boston Red Sox
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After playing only two games, Red Sox 2B Dustin Pedroia is once again on the DL due to soreness in his fractured left foot. Pedroia missed 44 games after fouling a ball off the foot.
"I'm upset. I let everybody down," Pedroia said. "I can't really do much. I tried. Hopefully it heals up and I'll get back in there."
Pedroia doesn't think he will need to be shut down for the season, but he's not happy. "I have to make sure I'm OK. If I hurt myself bad, not only could it mess me up for next year, it can mess me up for my career. Hopefully I don't do that."
Red Sox fans are nodding in agreement.
Clay Buchholz, who was fighting for a spot in the rotation during spring training, has been amazing this season. He has put himself in the discussion for the AL Cy Young Award. He's got a 2.26 ERA and a 15-5 record. Buchholz extended his scoreless streak to 20 innings on Sunday and has not allowed an earned run in his last 23 ⅓ innings.
7. Philadelphia Phillies
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The Phillies are getting healthy. Chase Utley has been activated from the DL after missing seven weeks. Ryan Howard was back this week as well.
The defending N.L champs are getting very dangerous. Roy Halladay has shined in his first season with the team and the offense has been much better after a horrendous June. They lead the wild card race but I'm sure this team is eying the top spot in the N.L. East. The squad that currently holds that spot, the Braves, better watch out.
The Phillies are poised to overtake Atlanta and reclaim the East. Once they get to the postseason the Phils will be an extremely tough out. Looks like its deja vu all over again in Philly.
6. Cincinnati Reds
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The Reds continue to silence their critics. Normally west coast trips spell doom for the Reds. They were 0-12 in the past four season at L.A. Not anymore. The Reds are off to a 5-1 start on their nine game swing.
Plenty of doubters thought getting swept by the Cardinals was a death wish for the young Reds. Instead the team has won eight of nine since and have turned a one game deficit into a 3.5 game lead. The Reds are for real and look like a playoff team.
Joey Votto continues to make a run at the triple crown. He is first in batting average at .323, he is second in RBI with 86, and third in home-runs in 29. MVP is not out of the question for this sweet swinging slugger.
Rookie Mike Leake was the odd-man out once Homer Bailey returned from injury. He will be used out of the bullpen. It's also a great way to keep the 22-year-old's inning count down.
5. Atlanta Braves
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Tom Gorzelanny allowed one run and fanned nine over seven innings in the Cubs' 5-4 victory over the Braves. The NL East leaders, who own a major-league-best 52-30 (.634) record against right-handed pitchers this season, now stand 20-21 (.488) against lefties.
Rick Ankiel's bases-loaded triple in the ninth inning was the game-winning hit for the Braves on Friday. It was Atlanta's 22nd last at-bat win this season, most in the majors and the most in one season for the Braves since 1999 when they had 31.
The Braves received Derrek Lee from the Cubs for some prospects this week. The big slugger should provide some power to an already potent Braves lineup.
4. Minnesota Twins
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The Twins' .282 team average is best in baseball.
Jim Thome crushed a walk-off home-run against the second place White Sox this week. He has 16 homers in part time action and has been improving his resume that may be worthy of Hall of Fame consideration.
How is it possible that MVP Joe Mauer hit his first home-run at Target field in mid-August? Very strange.
The red-hot Twins have gone 7-0-1 in their last eight series. They survived a July slump and have created a five game cushion for themselves in the AL Central. The small market Twinkies once again prove that having great defense and strong pitching can take you a long way.
The Twins lost two pitchers on Saturday. The team placed starter Kevin Slowey (right triceps strain) and reliever Ron Mahay (right shoulder injury) on the disabled list, and called up starter Nick Blackburn and reliever Anthony Slama.
3. San Diego Padres
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Adrian Gonzalez hit his 25th home run of the season this week. Gonzalez has hit at least 25 homers in each of the last four seasons, tying Ken Caminiti's franchise record (1995-1998).
Why have the Padres been so successful? Staring pitcher Wade LeBlanc's 3.84 ERA is the fourth best of the five starters. The pitching has been incredible and has shown no signs of slowing down.
Still waiting on the Padres offense to take this team down. It's starting to look as if the pitching doesn't need more than a few runs a game either way. This team has bulit a five game lead in the NL West, who would have guessed that back in April?
2. Tampa Bay Rays
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The Rays contiue to keep pace with the Yankees. They have gone 7-2 over the last nine including a three game sweep over first place Texas.
When James Shields pitches tonight against the Angels, he'll make his team record-tying 144th start. He will have a chance to match the franchise record with his 55th career win.
And he'll be sharing the mound with the guy who currently hold that record: Scott Kazmir.
"It's kinda funny, kinda ironic that I'm pitching against him," Shields said. "It's going to be kinda fun, I guess."
Joe Maddon loves to tinker with the lineup. So it was big news when he used the same one two days in a row this weekend. The Rays have used 102 lineups in 124 games, none more than six times.
1. New York Yankees
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Taking the most cautious approach, the New York Yankees have placed Alex Rodriguez on the 15-day DL due to a strained left calf.
"We are going to play it extremely safe," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi.
Rodriguez had been out of the starting lineup four of the past five games because of the injury. Obviously the Yankees made the move with the post-season in mind, and the club has done pretty well without him.
The Yanks are 12-0 when A-Rod is out of the line-up and have outscored opponents by over 60 runs. They have averaged 8.2 runs without A-Rod compared to five runs with him.
In place of Rodriguez, the Yankees have recalled Triple-A starting pitcher Ivan Nova from Scranton. Nova will start Monday in Toronto. All the other Yankees starters will be moved back one day.
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