The Man On The Moon
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:00 PM PDT
in Dodgers Game Previews
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PrintOn the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing, something once thought unfathomable, its only right that something equally unlikely should occur tonight. Jason Schmidt will make his first major league start in 765 days tonight, as the Dodgers open a three-game series with the Reds at Dodger Stadium.
In terms of expectations for Schmidt, there is quite a range. Tonight's start is a test, one that had to be taken, to see if Schmidt can still retire major league hitters. As Jim Peltz and Kevin Baxter of the LA Times reported:
"There have been plenty of guys that have been able to reinvent themselves as a pitcher," said Dodgers trainer Stan Conte, who held the same job in San Francisco when Schmidt pitched for the Giants.
"Jason will get that opportunity, and we'll see what we see, whether or not the shoulder can hold up and whether he can be effective at a major-league level," Conte said.
Incidentally, if you want a cool look at the 1969 moon landing superimposed on a baseball diamond, look no further than Beyond The Boxscore.
Two-way threat Micah Owings, a career .298/.327/.553 hitter, starts on the mound for the Reds.
Reds catcher Ramon Hernandez will have knee surgery Tuesday, and will miss 4-6 weeks, says Tom Groeschen of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
The Dodgers have swept the Reds in a three-game series in each of the past three seasons.
Get your guesses in for tonight's "Clogging The Bases" here.
Game Time: 7:10pm
TV: Prime Ticket
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The best part of the pennant race last year was when Owings beat the D-Backs as a pinch-hitter!
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:15 PM PDT up reply actions
There have been plenty of guys that have been able to reinvent themselves as a pitcher," said Dodgers trainer Stan Conte,
I keep hearing that but I’ve wonder how true that is. Tanana did it but he was young when he blew out his arm. How many 36 year old pitchers have reinvented themselves after surgery? I would think it is easier to do it gradually as time moves you from a power pitcher to a command, change of pace pitcher but I doubt to many have had the surgery in their mid 30’s and quickly become effective without some growing pains. Who are these comps they keep mentioning?
At best Jason can handle the fifth spot in the rotation but I expect nothing more and if he delivers more over the rest of the season without breaking down as his old body reacts to pitching every fifth day again after two years off, I’ll be shocked and pleasantly surprised.
No
He was a lot less effective for a while after his arm wore down and he wasn’t throwing 92-94 anymore though.
He reinvented himself at 88-90 or lower with the Dodgers.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:42 PM PDT up reply actions
Toronto/Mets offer
Sounds like Toronto wants:
1 high level prospect (F-Mart)
1 mid level prospect (Niese)
1 lower level/risky type (Tejeda)
1 flier (Parnell)
We can beat that easily, even if we don’t have a guy with F-Mart’s ceiling as a position player.
I was especially happy that Toronto asked for that. It makes me much more hopeful a deal could get done.
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:19 PM PDT up reply actions
Toronto will want a package built around Ethan Martin, I don’t know if I’m willing to part with Emart or Withrow at this point because they have elite upside.
At least it wasn't Ken Rosenthal...
…then it’s bs for sure. :o
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:31 PM PDT up reply actions
I know your not fond of getting Doc
but what would you give up for him without having to be talked off a cliff?
Conversely, if you are Toronto, what would you want from us
They don’t need outfielders, they don’t need a 2nd, they don’t need a young catcher, they need a SS, they need a 3rd, they could always use pitching since their young arms seem to end up being operated on.
Sounds right with an either or on Gordon/DeJesus
McDonald or Elbert
Bell or DeWitt
Withrow or Martin
Gordon or DeJesus
Man that would crater the system.
That's what i've been trying to do...
…is put myself into the mindset of a Blue Jays fan.
I would want at least one premium talent, preferably at shortstop. I would want 1 or 2 major league ready pitchers, and at least something else. A third baseman or a first baseman perhaps.
Other than that, I couldn’t get excited.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:46 PM PDT up reply actions
3 Way Deal
Sometimes in order to even out the talent and help both teams get what they want in terms of positions, a third team is involved. For example if the Jays don’t want an OFer but we want to include Lambo in the trade instead of all our young pitchers, we could move Lambo to a third team, who could then send a pitching prospect or SS prospect to the Jays. It doesn’t always have to be Team A vs Team B in these deals.
vr, Xei
Prospects
Elbert, Gordon, McDonald or whatever is fine with me. I’d rather not touch the major league roster at all though.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:43 PM PDT up reply actions
As long as it's not a package like this dude says...
I finally agree with lakersdodgersyankees4life, a package of Lambo, Bell (not really high on him IMO), Lindblom, and Martin is a decent starting point. Throw in Withrow and one of Dejesus Jr./Gordon, and I think JP accepts that.
Lambo, Bell, Lindblom, Martin, Withrow and DeJesus or Gordon.
No shit he accepts that, holy christ.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:44 PM PDT up reply actions
According to that Asian dude on THT
that’s probably like over 100 million in talent. :o
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:49 PM PDT up reply actions
mcdonald,elbert,lindblom,gordon,bell
thats a good package… the first 3 are going to be relievers long term rather then starters.. gordon is a big question mark and i actually think bell will be good
Elbert can be a near-elite starter in the long term
He’d be better than Ricky Romero if I had to bet, and Lindbolm can be an elite closer, or a number 2-3 starter.
If Lindblom can throw 92-95 as a starter, he’ll be starting.
He's really good
I’d bet on him being better than Elbert, unless he invented a third offering.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions
Blue Jays fans are over rating Ricky Romero
He is most definitely not in the Kershaw/Price/Hanson elite young pitching group.
True - but that doesn't mean he's not a good young pitcher
You seem to degrade players based on how their fans perceive them.
not necessarily
Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine both were control/command pitchers. They’re rarer, but you can find Cy-Young caliber control pitchers
by bucknellbruin on Jul 20, 2009 6:14 PM PDT up reply actions
romero is really good
he has a 92 mph fastball, a plus change and plus curve
I'll bet that if the Dodgers trade those 3 pitchers...
…they are not long-term relievers for the Jays.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:52 PM PDT up reply actions
mcdonald looses velocity after 2 innings
lindblom was not a good starter in college
elbert has bad control and i think he will be a lefty speciallist long term
but let toronto think that they are all starters then they will find out they go a bunch of relievers
McDonald doesn’t sit at 94-95 as a starter. Same reason Billingsley doesn’t sit at 94-96 as a starter.
The two plus off-speed pitches is the difference, including your beloved change.
Elbert is more likely to be a dominant reliever because he has one plus breaking ball and questionable third pitch.
Lindblom looks to be a back-end starter or setup man at worst. Hopefully a #3 or so, or a closer.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:58 PM PDT up reply actions
why is lindblom only #3
why cant he become a number 2 or 1?
Because...
…he doesn’t have a plus fastball or plus breaking pitches.
He has good command, two solid breaking pitches and a good fastball.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:05 PM PDT up reply actions
http://www.memoriesofkevinmalone.com/2009/02/prospect-profiles-2009-josh-lindblom_22.html
I’ve watched him recently and he looks better. Refining his off-speed stuff.
Not concerned about his ERA. Whatever, he has more important things to fine tune.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:08 PM PDT up reply actions
Lindblom was clocked at 95 as a starter when he was with
Double-A. But yeah, he works at 92-93 usually.
put in lambo too
i think he will be another soft swinging weak grounding james loney
Like Matt Kemp...
…is supposed to be a free swinging, bad route taking, low average hitting, mediocre power having corner outfielder?
Prospects are prospects because they aren’t fully developed.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:54 PM PDT up reply actions
matt kemp
has never been low average hitter
before this year
i thought matt kemp was like emil brown
i changed my mind now
I don't think that one is gonna come around...
…:o
My expectations since he was in the minors was Mark Grace-esque, but even that looks iffy at this point. :-/
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:00 PM PDT up reply actions
Without the most important part
of Mark Grace, his 400 OBP and Gold Glove.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:07 PM PDT up reply actions
james is diffferent
he play corner position… especially first base. matt plays center.. you dont expect as much offense from center field as you do from first
james loneys offennse right now would be acceptable from a catchers position
Yeah and the implication
above that he’s like a Kyle Russell type prospect is wrong. Lambo’s a keeper.
Can't evaluate these things in a vaccum...
…fair or not, they always ask for more from the Dodgers. Past few years should have taught us that. They would ask for these shit players from other teams, but would refuse to deal with the Dodgers without asking for Kershaw/Broxton/Billingsley/Kemp/Ethier/Martin/etc.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:28 PM PDT up reply actions
Halladay’s agent is Greg Landry, per Cot’s….couldn’t find info on the Mets’ prospects agent(s).
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:34 PM PDT up reply actions
Nothing confirmed just yet, but probably.
I don’t think DeWitt would have necessarily started even if he is active. They want defense behind Schmidt
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:43 PM PDT up reply actions
or, more likely, Hudson is only out for a day or two.
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:44 PM PDT up reply actions
loney needs a day off
after that performance he put on yesterday
I’m feeling confident in Loney tonight now. His good luck charm has returned! :)
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:44 PM PDT up reply actions
Reds
per John Fay:
Willy Taveras 8
Jerry Hairston Jr. 6
Joey Votto 3
Brandon Phillips 4
Laynce Nix 7
Edwin Encarnacion 5
Chris Dickerson 9
Ryan Hanigan 2
Micah Owings 1
Willy Taveras?
I don’t get why the Reds signed Taveras when they have Bruce who can play Center and their top prospect is a good defensive center fielder
I think he's vaguely racist too...
…like when he made that comment about black people not liking night games or something. I was like wtf is that.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:48 PM PDT up reply actions
It was the other way around
that black players were better suited than white players to play a day game.
by Michael White on Jul 20, 2009 4:50 PM PDT up reply actions
It's like 900 degrees in the summer in Japan
with like eleventy billion percent humidity.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 4:56 PM PDT up reply actions
I can confirm this. It was reported by Jon Heyman last year.
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:56 PM PDT up reply actions
I can confirm because
I almost died walking everywhere.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Played for Hiroshima though, right?
That stadium is outdoors. So is Koshien and others.
People think that because Tokyo Dome is the most famous. :o
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Not sure, honestly
Though they did play day games, so I assume it’s almost as rare as day games here.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:10 PM PDT up reply actions
makes sense, Lilly came up as a Dodger. :)
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 4:48 PM PDT up reply actions
Somewhere Jim Duquette is busy carving “Duq was here” into the wood near the ceiling in his room.
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 5:00 PM PDT up reply actions
kazmir stuff is not the same
plus he has bad control and will go 6 inning at most
Doubt he's taking one year again
so i’ll pass.
Didn’t mind him at 1-year for this year either but I was down on him because of the rumors he was rejecting 3 years 30 million.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:11 PM PDT up reply actions
He didn't reject it, the Astros pulled the 3 years/28 million before Wolf and his agent could decide.
I was thinking more of the Dodgers offering him arbitration, and building off that.
That's what I mean
I based it off the assumption at first that Wolf didn’t want it. :o
I was like “fuck signing this guy for 36 million or something”
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:16 PM PDT up reply actions
Tony Abreu had a decent game leading off for the ‘Topes yesterday, 4-6 with a triple, homerun and 6 RBI. I’m still keen on him he he can stay healthy.
I love the idea of Abreu
IF he can stay healthy, and I don’t blame the Dodgers’ brass if they have their doubts. But while he’s healthy, he’d be a damned good guy to have on the bench. Or if he stays healthy.. as another trade chip.
Sanchez gives up two
home runs to Braves, now down 3-2. Tee-hee.
Aw, now you’ll have to trade Alderson, too, Sabean.
by underdog on Jul 20, 2009 5:11 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
withrow
how come when hallday trades come up, nobody includes withrow in them.. he might have the highest celings of all our prospects
Andrew Lambo at double-A this year.
.274/.328/.446 in 375 PAs, and that’s with basically doing nothing in May.
More importantly, Lambo can hit left handers, which is why everyone thinks he’s a starter.
against LHP this year: 0.295/0.348/0.448 in 105 ABs
hes like james loney
hit the left handers but not the rightys.. the reverse platoon but its even more with loney
What do you think
the chances are that a lefty not being able to hit a righty is a long-term problem?
I’m sure it’s POSSIBLE, but I don’t know too many like that.
by Chad Moriyama on Jul 20, 2009 5:32 PM PDT up reply actions
JAMES LONEY
is slugging .294 at home this sEason
wow when i saw that right now i was in complete shock
.294!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
we got a winner
Russell Martin is slugging .283 at home this year
loneys slugging percentage is near .400
the reason im in shock is because how is he sooo bad at home
Yeah - his splits this year are just whack
Hits LHP can’t hit RHP, hits on the road, can’t hit at home.
Soriano just completely miffed a ball hit to the warning track by victorino
on another note, how do you access that site with all the sound bites from this season’s games as heard on KABC…i believe Eric linked it once.
O.A.
E.Martin with a nice start tonight: 5IP – 4H – 0ER – 2BB – 5SO
Do you think he’ll skip the California League and go straight to Double-A?
bad sign if elbert goes down?
keeping dewitt may mean something happened hudson and it may be more serious then first though
Maybe, maybe not
Could just be buying a day or two’s insurance on Hudson before sending DeWitt down to activate Kuo.
That sounds right to me
The Daily News said O-Dog is available tonight if needed per Torre (of course Hudson said he was fine).
by Eric Stephen on Jul 20, 2009 6:32 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
And posting that comment threw me to the top
I sent a “trouble report” to SBNation from the “contact us” link.
Only six more weeks of minor league ball and Martin has done nothing
to show he deserves to skip a level.
nate eovaldi
im listening to the broadcast
the guy said he has excellent control of his fastball but his curve is not that great yet. he gave up a hit off a hanging curve.
then the next batter strike 1 and 2 on fastballs the second being 94 MPH then a 73 MPH curve to strike him out swinging
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