Around Baseball 2015

[KIllerSloth]

So that means that the GM has not been successful in achieving his objective for 6 years

 

Would you keep an employee that has underachieved six years in a row

 

My company would , but they suck.

[RealAccountant]

An employee is evaluated on a multitude of objectives...

 

Not an employee on such a high level. They are usually judged on single metrics like revenue generation or overall production

[jaysfan2014]

I would be all over Kratz, but alas we'd need to trade Navarro to make it happen. Its crazy that a better catcher is out there unemployed while the Jays are paying $5M for Navarro to stay on the bench. I don't understand baseball guys.

 

Kratz has been DFAd 2 times this season by the KC Royals and Boston Red Sox. He's not better than Navarro. There's a reason nobody wants him. Don't be surprised if he ends up clearing waivers and going to Pawtucket.

[leaffie]

So that means that the GM has not been successful in achieving his objective for 6 years

 

Would you keep an employee that has underachieved six years in a row

 

How many years did it take AA to rebuild the farm, so that he had some players to use to improve this team?

[jaysfan2014]

Rangers lose (thanks A's!). 5 losses in a row, and heading to Toronto to face the league's best offense. Could be a really ugly weekend for the Rangers.

 

Speaking of the A's... they've really come back. 9-2 in their last 11 games. They're a team to keep an eye on. If they get their bullpen straightened out, that team could come back and give Houston or the wild card contenders a scare. Yanks and Twins, along with the Jays and O's better watch their backs..

[baubau]

Kratz has been DFAd 2 times this season by the KC Royals and Boston Red Sox. He's not better than Navarro. There's a reason nobody wants him. Don't be surprised if he ends up clearing waivers and going to Pawtucket.

 

What makes you say that Navarro is better?

[Caper]

What makes you say that Navarro is better?

 

He's been beating the fur off the ball his last few games. Catching really well too. Just can't throw anyone out... Which is a pretty big knock.

[jaysfan2014]

Marc Krauss traded to Tampa for Kyle Winkler. Comparably as bad as us letting Matt West go? Winkler has a 1.46 ERA in AA/AAA with good strikeout numbers. Guess Tampa is desperate for bench bats, especially with Nick Franklin, who was optioned to AAA, absolutely stinking up the Rays bench.

 

[Trouba95]

Let's go Stros! Need them to sweep the Yanks.

[Angrioter]

[KIllerSloth]

 

lol

[RealAccountant]

Good to see Yankees losing

[bzapple]

Keuchel is carving up the Yankees.

 

11 K's through 6. He's like a super-powered Mark Buehrle.

[Angrioter]

Mike Curto ‏

The Mariners and Diamondbacks GMs are sitting next to each other at Cheney Stadium tonight. Maybe they'll make a trade.

[Orgfiller]

Mike Curto ‏

The Mariners and Diamondbacks GMs are sitting next to each other at Cheney Stadium tonight. Maybe they'll make a trade.

 

Mariners and D-Backs fans everywhere are throwing up.

[Orgfiller]

Keuchel is carving up the Yankees.

 

11 K's through 6. He's like a super-powered Mark Buehrle.

 

His beard is impeccable.

[43211234]

Dallas Keuchel is a legit ace. So good.

[jaysfan2014]

Get someone up in the pen Hinch! Yanks have the tying run coming to the plate.

[jaysfan2014]

Yanks lose! Jays now 0.5 game out of a wild card. And with a favorable series vs. a sliding Rangers team, we could get it easily this weekend. Only the Yovani Gallardo game worries me.

[Angrioter]

Keuchel is good

[KIllerSloth]

Yanks lose! Jays now 0.5 game out of a wild card. And with a favorable series vs. a sliding Rangers team, we could get it easily this weekend. Only the Yovani Gallardo game worries me.

 

Anything can happen, every game worries me lol.

[RealAccountant]

They should all worry you. This is the Jays we're talking about.

 

Yep these are the ops Jays usually blpw

[Smokey]

That's not true at all.

 

Owner: "Good morning, Mr. GM. It's time for your annual performance review.

GM: "Sounds good."

Owner: "Did you win?"

GM: "No."

Owner: "You're fired."

 

They look at what went right...and why.

What went wrong...and why.

What improvements were made...what things devolved...talk about plans for how things can be improved upon going forward. What kind of roadblocks were encountered...what kind of support is required by management to clear said roadblocks...etc, etc, etc. This is not a simple evaluation. Consider the train wreck that was left behind when he started. They've only now just gotten to the point where the team is reasonably close, and has the young assets (prospects) that is can package together to add premium talent. Is money the issue now? Perhaps (I think it is). The argument is made that $130M should be enough...and that's fair...but if you look at this roster, how many anchors do they really have? Reyes? Perhaps...but find me a team that has no overpaid players. If you're married to $130M then some of your roster needs to be young, cheap, and talented...those types of players you need to develop...and since there weren't any in this system when AA got here, it takes years of drafting and development to get to the point where you can have young players make an impact on your roster...and we're just getting there now.

 

AA may very well get canned...but looking at it as simply as, 'have you made the playoffs', is not how you evaluate him as a whole.

 

 

"We just feel like we're so close to contention that this is a deal that we needed to make... I think it comes down to how you evaluate R.A., and I think that's going to define the results of this trade for us... We evaluate him as a front-of-the-rotation starter... there's so much overwhelming data and evidence that points to him continuing to have success." -AA

 

Here's the problem; Alex has been given every opportunity to succeed and we should be getting "there" now but unfortunately he couldn't stick to the plan and shot himself in the foot in the process. In a year where JPA was his primary catcher, had question marks at 2B, LF, CF and all over the rotation, he goes all-in targeting a 40 year-old as his "ace". It's funny cause when he first took over he emphasized the importance of having a young core of power arms in the rotation in order to compete in the AL East. He also claimed that building a 95+ win team was necessary to make the playoffs in this division and that he planned on building a team that not just contends but "can get to the WS and win it, and then sustain it year-in and year-out"... So here we are now six years later and Hutch is pretty much the only young pitcher with a full season of major league experience under his belt.. not to mention that Kevin f***ing Pillar is the only home grown full time position player on the team. Where are all the young high ceiling players that were suppose contribute to these 95+ win multiple championship teams??

 

I know it's hard to argue against most of his moves this year but unless he's able to significantly improve the rotation, he's basically failed 3 straight years since declaring the team ready for contention.

[Atothe]

Keuchel dominated. Finally did the jays a favour

[Boxcar]

there's so much overwhelming data and evidence that points to him continuing to have success." -AA

 

I would kill to see the process on that one.

[Jimcanuck]

I would kill to see the process on that one.

 

If Beeston directed AA on the Marlins and Mets trades, does that change your opinion of AA?

 

He's negotiated good contracts, drafted well, generally made good trades with some bad ones thrown in, about to sign the No. 2 IFA..... and two clusterf***s in Marlins and Mets deals. Disregard the clusterf***s and he's been a good GM overall.

[pickoff22]

If Beeston directed AA on the Marlins and Mets trades, does that change your opinion of AA?

 

He's negotiated good contracts, drafted well, generally made good trades with some bad ones thrown in, about to sign the No. 2 IFA..... and two clusterf***s in Marlins and Mets deals. Disregard the clusterf***s and he's been a good GM overall.

 

 

This biggest problem in being able to clearly evaluate AA is that we never will truly know what financial resources have been available to him and when. We also will never know exactly which FAs he targeted but wasn't able to sign because of geography or turf concerns.

 

We're left with a lot of questions when it comes to his failures - what efforts were put forward this offseason when it comes to the bullpen as an example. We know he talked to Zack Duke, but really we didn't know that until Duke spoke up prior to the White Sox series. His pursuit of players aren't made public for the most part so we just don't have all the information we need to do a proper analysis of his efforts.

 

When it comes to the draft and his trade record, as a whole I'm happy with AA. He has made some unbelievable trades that I don't think many GMs would be able to pull off. And of course he's had a dud or two. That happens.

 

The glaring holes that this team has had the past few seasons is what angers everyone (including myself), but outside of the occasional hissy-fit I try to remember that I just don't know exactly what he has tried to do and what he has had in terms of dollars available to him.

[glory]

Filling out a roster and payroll management are his main issues. I'm fine with his drafting and can forgive the Dickey/Marlins trades since he seems to have learned for his mistakes. But the roster management will always be an issue with him, and obviously I don't like his choice of managers in case that wasn't clear in my previous posts.

 

He's not the worst GM, and if the off-season he just had is any indication, he might be trending upwards, but without a playoff appearance this season, he's done.

[Smokey]

If Beeston directed AA on the Marlins and Mets trades, does that change your opinion of AA?

 

He's negotiated good contracts, drafted well, generally made good trades with some bad ones thrown in, about to sign the No. 2 IFA..... and two clusterf***s in Marlins and Mets deals. Disregard the clusterf***s and he's been a good GM overall.

 

Do you have a shred of evidence to support this baseless claim?? Or do you prefer to stick your head in the sand and "disregard" reality every time the subject comes up?? Besides, based on that logic, how do we know that Beeston wasn't directing AA to make the Donaldson trade?? Yeah, I think I'll stick to that from now... AA loved Lawrie so much and would never trade a good Canadian boy without Beeston forcing his hand... Completely logical!

[Atothe]

Do you have a shred of evidence to support this baseless claim?? Or do you prefer to stick your head in the sand and "disregard" reality every time the subject comes up?? Besides, based on that logic, how do we know that Beeston wasn't directing AA to make the Donaldson trade?? Yeah, I think I'll stick to that from now... AA loved Lawrie so much and would never trade a good Canadian boy without Beeston forcing his hand... Completely logical!

 

I guarantee beeston didn't know how good Donaldson is