The Matt Kemp Offseason Extravaganza Continues

With good news comes some less than good news:

The Dodgers sold 23,900 season tickets last year, club president Dennis Mannion said today. They have sold 20,700 so far this year, he said, with customers facing a Friday renewal deadline.

“My concern is the number of unpaid accounts that haven’t canceled,” Mannion said at baseball’s quarterly owners’ meetings in Phoenix.

give him a long term deal. Much more then Chad. In fact I’m not sure I’d give any pitcher a long term deal. So for me
Kemp, Andre and nobody else. I would sign Martin if he’d do 3/9 but I doubt he would.

For those who would not want to give Andre long term can you till me why?

I like your caption, but I thought maybe he was describing something to Rhianna in the stands.

Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports

If the Dodgers don’t sign free agent starter Joel Pineiro, they are open to bringing back right-hander Vicente Padilla, one major league source said Wednesday

From the Dodgers:

#Dodgers announce 2010 bobblehead lineup: Andre Ethier (5/18), Jonathan Broxton (6/8), James Loney (7/20) and Matt Kemp (8/17)

crowd are that into Clayton yet.

In the last 30 years, you would hard pressed to find a “popular” pitcher on the LA Dodgers, that is one who captured the average fan’s attention. Sure, there have been some very good pitchers but very few that would make someone who didn’t really follow the team to come out and watch.

Orel was probably there perhaps in 1988 and afterwards but did people really like Ramon Martinez, Kevin Brown, Derek Lowe, or Brad Penny, all who pitched very well wearing Dodger Blue.

Big Bison fan, but I must say I was surprised to see how well he stacks up against Markakis, who seems to have a much more polished game. I guess its the additional .025 OBP.

from Will Carroll

Big news pending for mets. Doesn’t sound good

Are there any first-ballot candidates still waiting to be written about and unclaimed?

Joe (Philly)


Price or Kershaw in 2010?
Jim Callis
  (2:49 PM)


Kershaw.

there is a footnote about three page scrolls in with a pretty cool Jim Murray story:

*When I’m nervous — something that doesn’t happen much anymore (thank God) — I tend to babble. I know I’ve written the story here about the time I met my all-time hero Jim Murray at the Masters. I was the columnist in Augusta at the time, and he came down for what I’m pretty sure was his last Masters. I am not the type to approach my heroes, but I had to do this, so I walked up to Jim Murray and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to me, and I remember he had these big coke bottle glasses, and this kind face, and I UNLEASHED on him, a torrent of praise and esteem and nonsense — a whole lot of "Mr. Murray, um, I’m just really a big fan, Mr. Murray, and Mr. Murray, I really got into this business because, I mean, not that I could ever be like you Mr. Murray, but because, you know, you are so great Mr. Murray and I just, Mr. Murray, if I could only write like one-tenth of the way you write, Mr. Murray …"

And I remember him just looking at me, patiently, waiting for some sort of point to come out, something he could digest, something, anything. And looking back, I think I realized the horror of it all even as I was talking to him. I’m quite sure that my mind was saying, "You need to shut up now. OK, shut up now. You don’t even know what you’re saying now. He thinks you’re a madman. You need to stop talking now."

But I kept going and going and going. And finally, when I had run out of breath, I wrapped it up somehow. And Jim Murray put his hand on my shoulder, and he gave me the most patient smile imaginable — a father to son smile — and he said: "Next time, use fewer words."

Asked why he advised Kemp to explore a multiyear deal with the Dodgers, Stewart replied, “The ballclub is really, really motivated to do it. Any time the club shows it’s motivated to do something for the player, it’s a good thing. Second, you always want to get a young player an opportunity to put good money in his pocket.”

Matt Harrington needed an agent like this. It’s an old story, but one that I never got out of my head.

RT @DodgersNews: Dodgers consider multiyear pacts for stars http://is.gd/6ej9q

But fuck 2 years, lets go for 4 or 5 years.

David Cameron (of Fangraphs and USS Mariner) tweeted this earlier…Mariners’ special assistant to the GM Tony Blengino explains WAR on radio. It is a long explanation, but also very measured as he tries to explain the “stat of the week” to the layperson. Very cool that a major league executive is doing this.

I believe it starts at about the 25-minute mark.

http://www.mynorthwest.com/?nid=577&a=13941&p=32&n=Hot%20Stove%20League