We improved TWO positions! 1B and RF. Garko probably wouldn't have got
150 ABs if Broussard was still on the team. This guy just plain HIT!
Choo right now is platoon OF but has time to work on hitting lefties
for next season. Having an above average rookie year. Biggest Free
agent need is a big Right handed hitting OF for next season. Torry
Hunter? Just a guess.

wolfagain wrote:


That's what was said last year, and the year before.


Ho Hum

"wolfagain" <wolf@provide.net> wrote in message
news:1159361691.481657.102740@h48g2000cwc.googlegr oups.com...

Offensively the team, IMHO, would be fine for next year.
A power upgrade in LF would be nice, but I'd hate to see Shapiro
trade any quality starting pitcher for, E.G., an Adam Dunn.
In other words, Byrd, yes. Westbrook, no.

Defensive upgrades at C (which may be in house),
2nd base, and SS is more of a necessity.

Could/would JP play 2nd base ? Could/would VM play LF ?
If they would, then let Kouz and Marte fight it out over 3rd base.
But, I would not be surprised to see either or both JP & VM traded.

Someone is needed at 2nd base.
I don't think Luna or Inglett are the answer there.

It's obvious to all that the Tribe's biggest need is help in the Bullpen.
I'd like to see them sign a first rate set up man. and closer.
Who ? I dunno....I'm no GM.
Just no knuckleballers or rotator-cuff surgery rebounds signed on the cheap.

Steve

Steve wrote:
Martinez and/or Westbrook will not be traded! No way. Building a
bull pen is tricky and sometimes just luck. They run 'hot' and 'cold'
year to year except the really good ones that teams won't trade. We
need about 4 new young arms out there, NO recycled veterans coming off
bad years. Tough job for Shapiro!

Definitely improved. Maybe SandWedges' platooning of players hurts their
chances of improving. Choo was on a hot streak when we first got him. Then
SW sat him down and he cooled off for whatever reason. Time for him to join
Butch Davis.
Al

"wolfagain" <wolf@provide.net> wrote in message
news:1159361691.481657.102740@h48g2000cwc.googlegr oups.com...

Allan9 wrote:

Well, it may or may not be related. Players have hot / cold streaks,
seemingly for no reason. Seems a little bit premature to blame it on Wedge.

Jim that's why I said Maybe. I certainly wish SW would make a fool out of
me
Al

"Jim" <korski@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:VMQTg.6682$OE1.2559@tornado.ohiordc.rr.com...

On Tue, 3 Oct 2006 23:27:12 -0400, "Allan9" <exatc@neo1.rr.com> wrote:


your premise concerning wedges' platooning is refuted by the results
of wedge's platooning of perez & broussard - who combined to hit
..316 21 HRs 68 RBIs in only 367 ABs.

ironically, they did not perform as well once they got to seattle, but
they still combined fort 30 HR & 96 RBIsfor the entire season - wihich
is actually slightly better than what i projected at the beginning of
the season - they turned out to be a pretty good stop-gap bargain at
only $4.5mil a year.


"i can spell. i just can't type."

"barry" <toisan_boy@nospam.yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:5ei6i25kihb4stv4m5da3dhok613t4csv6@4ax.com...

That is correct Shapiro was 1 for 2006,
and the 1st base platoon system was it.

Whether or not two spots on the ML roster is a
good idea for one and only one position is a different matter.

Again though, worrying about the spending of multi-millionaire
owners is something that I have to laugh about. I'm sure Dolan
gets a warm and fuzzy feeling knowing that some peon fans care
about what amounts to chump change for him.

Steve

On Wed, 4 Oct 2006 08:27:19 -0400, "Steve" <steveoneill@alltel.net>
wrote:


i think the other half of that choice was an underlying assumption
that the year would provide time for garko to take to playing 1st. had
we overpaid to get a fulltime 1B, if garko were ready in 2007 (which
is not a foregone conclusion) there would be somebdy in his way - in
much the same way that jim thome's presence made sean casey
expendable.

and you aren't including the assumption that blake would bounce back -
which he did - and the overall assumption that the offense would be
productive as it was constutued - which it was.

the starting pitchiers (outisde of the choice of jason johnson - who i
thought would work out well) each finished with records above for .500
- pretty impressive for a team that finshed under .500. and mgmt was
willing to admit that they made a mistake and cut him loose - and
boston took him IIRC.


it was never stated explicitly but i believe that perez was also a
backup plan for balke - had blake not come around, i think michaels
would have gone to RF & perez would have also platooned with blake.


that sounds like a pretty ignorant statement when you consider dolan
shelled out over THREE HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS on a business the
previous owner spent only 45 million.

yes, jacobs revvied the indians, but the bottom line had been and
always will be MONEY, not whether steve is pleased. jacobs was astute
enough to realize that his revenue stream was maxxed out and he had a
LOT of downstream expenses in terms of escalating salaries and
contract renewals for aging veterans. if his main priority was to keep
steve happy, i doubt he'd have sold right at the top of the market and
made top dollar - and a profit of over 250 milllion dollars (and
proabbly colser to 300 million if you believe in some alleged creative
accounting). and for all jacobs did - the indians never won a world
series.

for doan to duplicate jacobs' success, he needs to identify young
talent, lock them up to realtively inexpensive long term salaries
early in their careers. but you can't become younger, cheaper AND
BETTER.

the main problem is that when you're in a business where there's
always at least one idiot willing to pay top dollar for talent like a
steinbrenner who's got a geographical advantage in terms of revenue
streams, it's going to be tougher to compete. what MLB needs most is a
salary cap.

"i can spell. i just can't type."