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Hey Ping!!
Do you think the NL Central race will go from being the most interesting(I think it was last year....the Cards just came out of nowhere, seemingly) to the most boring?? I think so....it doesn't seem like any of those top 3 teams made any really good moves.....so far.
I can't wait until March 2nd! Of course it will not be opening day but still it will really start to feel like Baseball season :) Though the sad thing is that the biggest game won't be the Rockies against the White Sox :ohno It will be the Nationals against the Mets. Then on March 3rd we have both Soxs and Yanks games. YAHOO!!! HERE COMES BASEBALL!!!
I'm so psyched for baseball to start...I can't stand it! :yay
As you can probably tell I'm a huge Phillies fan, so I never expect anything going into a new season. although last year I had very high hopes...new stadium...being picked as preseason favorites....then, the crash.
This year the Phillies did nothing to upgrade. I'm glad they got rid of Millwood, was a little bummed that Eric Milton left, and it seems we just keep adding pitchers who don't have much left in them. :ohno Hopefully Randy Wolf and Padilla are healthy this year, but, we still don't have an "ace". I'm picking them for around 3rd in the division. Hopefully having no expectations will allow me to just sit back and enjoy the season....since I just love going to games no matter what!!!
Hubby and I are going to spring training this year, so I'm really anxious!
I'm also excited for the season. Feeling really good about the Twins; we got Johan "Cy Young" Santana back and Joe Mauer is supposedly completely healthy and ready for a full season.
I'm sick of the Yanks and some their antics but of course can't wait to cheer on Derek Jeter! As long as he's on the team I'll continue to follow them and cheer them on as well.
GO MINNESOTA TWINS! :yay
Nope. Can't be Jeter. He has 1 Gold Glove (last year), not 0. Although the 3 year averages match up pretty well with Jeter.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mariner
Jeter might not be the better fielder then Renteria, but he brings many intangibles to the game. Remember the cutoff throw in the ALDS against Oakland? Diving into the stands to save a regular season game against Boston?
You can knock the Yankees all you want, they've admittedly had their problems in the recent past, but don't knock Jeter. He's a class act. Plays his butt off every day and does what it takes to win.
And if you want to make a comparison between Renteria and Jeter, you have to mention how significantly Renteria's numbers dropped off last year (OPS dropped over .150 in one year, 34 steals to 17, caught 11 times) despite being in the most potent lineup in the National League.
OK, I'm going back to lurking now.
Okay hazy, you can't go back to lurking until you figure out who it is. I have great respect for Jeter. I do think he has limited range and I don't know how long he'll be able to play an effective shortstop. There is no one I'd rather have up in a clutch hitting situation in the playoffs though. He is purely and simply a winner all statistics aside.
It's Jeter. I don't think Bill knew he won the Gold Glove last year.
It is Jeter, but I was shocked to learn he won the gold glove (ESPN had not updated his player profile yet when I pulled the numbers). Worst Gold Glove since Palmero won it playing only 28 games or so at 1B.
Jeter is incredibly overrated with the glove and has lousy range, even though he does turn two well. It is like Bret Boone part 2. Basically he looks good on the pivot, and he handles everything he gets too. It's that last part that is the killer. Jeter and Boone both get to far fewer hit balls in their zone than the average shortstop/2bman get too, let alone being the best. (and yes, STAT's is contracted by baseball to actually have people at every game who record things like this)
Yes, a tremendous team captain and all around representative of the game. But the dive into the stands was a play most SS's would have made without having to do that.
It rememinds me of Andruw Jones (who brings the complete opposite of the intangibles to the game that Jeter does) used to get knocked because he made his plays look too easy. Nevermind that he was there and in position on line drives to the gap that an average CF would be trying to get to at full sprint.
More so than anything else in baseball, fielding skill is a very subjective subject.
My point though, if I had a team today, I would take Renteria over Jeter and be quite happy. Not a knock on Jeter, but he is living on reputation and not actuals. Seems like a tremendous guy, but skill wins over clubhouse chemistry every day of the week in baseball, and is it too soon to note that the Yanks have actually been choking in the playoffs the last several years?
Might be time to re-evaluate some of our commonly held beliefs.
I'll have to disagree (I know, I know, nothing new) with you on this one Bill. I don't think there is a GM alive who if offered the choice between Jeter and Renteria wouldn't take Jeter.
The following is a play most SS's would have made without having to dive into the stands? Seriously, that's almost laughable.
http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/NASAp...x.jsp?c_id=nyy (click the play at the top - voted play of the year by MLB.com)
Not only is Jeter rated the best relay/cutoff man in baseball (there's more to playing defense than having "range") by ESPN, he's also rated the best baserunner in baseball by them as well.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/column...bob&id=1988521
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/column...tim&id=1969362
Absolutely agree the Yankees have choked the last 3-4 years. Yep. And it sucks (for a Yankees fan, I'm sure the rest of the baseball world is loving it). I think the pitching they acquired in the offseason will be enough to have them get over the hump, but it is an older staff prone to injury and they have no depth outside of the top 5, so if one (or worse two) of them go down, they'll be in the same boat they were in last year.
I'm just excited for the season and glad to be talking about it.
I am not sure what baserunning has to do with fielding equation? Besides, Renteria is a BETTER baserunner than Jeter.
Yes, he does do the pivot well, as I noted. However, his range is horrendous. Range does matter a lot because the balls he is not getting too are base hits.
Given that Renteria is younger, cheaper, a comperable hitter, and a better fielder, I would take him. Though I admit, if I had an excellent team to begin with, and I was looking for strong leadership to push us over the top, then I would have to defer to Jeter. He is the consumate professional. Of course, I would take ARod or Tejada over either of them.
Renteria is not exactly un-clutch himself though, having won a world series game 7 with his bat.
BTW, I am not sure the Yanks choked (other than obviously last season) as much as they are getting a bit overrated. I was probably a bit harsh there. Let's face it, Bernie is no longer effective in CF, and some of their free agents have been a bust. Sheffield and Giambi will be one's to watch this year given their no longer being juiced... allegedly...
Their starting pitching will make the difference this year. I was shocked at how Vazquez collapsed. Hopefully Pavano will fare better, though stat wise, Vazquez was a better pitcher than Pavano. Pavano has been through a lot healthwise and was once dealt for Pedro, so I think he will handle things better.