Ryan hands-on with Texas arms
Posted: Monday, February 16, 2009 2:47 PM
Six swings to start the week:
1. WILL NOLAN RYAN…finally develop pitching in Texas? After another abysmal performance from the mound by his club in 2008, the team president of the Rangers went to the instructional league to work with 31 pitching prospects.
His beliefs: More live batting practice for the pitchers, more sprinting, and thankfully, expanding pitch limits. Ryan is not for abandoning the pitch limits that most organizations cherish, but rather tailoring the numbers for individual pitchers. The chorus of cheers heard loudly is from former pitchers, who have been dismayed at the deteriorating standards of their position.
An aside, the Cubs hope Rich Harden can make 25 starts this year. That’s one of every six games. Only once in his injury-plagued career has Harden made 30 starts. Back to the Rangers. It will be interesting to watch the Texas spring training games and search for any early signs of a turnaround.
2. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN THE CIRCUS LEAVES TOWN? Alex Rodriguez holds a press conference Tuesday upon his arrival at the Yankees camp. (Perhaps he will be made to admit, on camera, that he unfairly maligned Selena Roberts of Sports Illustrated last week. A-Rod has called her and apologized).
Then the performance enhancing drugs talk will fade, and focus will begin on the 2009 Yankees. And there are a bunch of topics to tackle during spring training.
Closer Mariano Rivera had shoulder surgery last fall, and is approaching his comeback slowly at age 39. Jorge Posada will catch a game no earlier than mid-March. Center field is a battle between Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner. Nick Swisher, the object of an early offseason move, comes to camp as a reserve. If Rivera is not right, the natural Plan B, Joba Chamberlain, is in the bullpen. Lots of money spent and an impressive array of talent for the Yankees, but there are still questions.
3. WHY IS PUDGE RODRIGUEZ UNSIGNED? After Manny Ramirez, Rodriguez is the second most successful free agent still on the open market. Immediate skepticism arises over possible performance enhancing drug use, and in a weekend interview, Pudge refused to offer denials. Instead when asked if he was one of the 103 unnamed players who failed a 2003 drug test, Pudge tossed up a lame “Only the Lord knows.” He doubled down with the time-tested reaction to the A-Rod news, “It happened and everybody has to move forward.”
Catchers were not in demand this winter, and there has been almost no discussion of the man who as recently as 2006, was considered a game-changing player. A Puerto Rican newspaper has reported Rodriguez has been offered a deal by the Astros, but is holding off because he wants to join the Mets, who have not expressed any interest in him publicly.
4. WILL ATLANTA SNATCH KEN GRIFFEY JR. WITH A LATE PUSH? It might make sense for the Braves, who are in need of an outfielder. In the face of falling attendance, adding a future Hall of Fame name wouldn’t be a bad move.
Fair to speculate, as well, if the Mariners (who have been talking to Griffey’s agent) would be hurt by his signing with Atlanta. As they continue their makeover, the Mariners fight to retain a tremendous fan base built over the last decade, the origins of which were directly tied to the blossoming of a superstar named Ken Griffey Jr.
If Griffey ends up back with the Mariners, it would be as a windshield, blocking the unpleasant elements ahead as Seattle rebuilds. But it’s a no-harm move for both sides, allowing Griffey to end his career as so many superstars hope to do, where it began.
But if Griffey were to choose Atlanta, the Mariners could proceed, uninterrupted, with a much-needed overhaul. How strange that in February it’s Griffey -- not Manny Ramirez – who is the free-agent outfielder with two teams bidding on him.
5. WHITHER MANNY RAMIREZ? A quiet weekend except for the gentle leaks that the Dodgers are in dialogue with Ramirez’s agent, Scott Boras. But Friday’s Los Angeles Times had an interesting aside -- the Dodgers have fallen far short of sales projections for their first Arizona spring training. To a degree, no surprise given the economy, but the team had organized nine special sponsorships for the top-end customers/businesses. They are 0-9 in those sales attempts. Wonder if that changes ownership’s view of Ramirez’s worth.
6. WHAT IS BASEBALL’S MOST SUCCESSFUL ENTERPRISE? While steroid and performance enhancing drug talk absorbs the media, the New York Times ran an interesting but probably largely unnoticed story in its business section last week. It talked about MLB.com and included these numbers: 500,000 video subscribers paid $120 in 2008 for online access to televised games. Also, 350,000 subscribers paid $15 each to listen to radio broadcasts online. The math is $60 million for MLB.TV, and another $4.75 million for radio.
The revenue is divvied up 30 ways so no team gains an advantage. The point is that the “business” of baseball is very healthy in the multimedia world, and this is a revenue stream less likely to be impacted by the economy. I still await the first media member willing to pause from the reflexive bashing of MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to acknowledge the outrageous success of MLB.com, and admit that, perhaps, it could be a reason the owners were willing to pay Selig so handsomely.
