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Chicago White Sox

  • The Very Big Hurt: The White Sox got terrible news on Sunday, learning
    that designated hitter Frank Thomas would miss another eight
    weeks with a broken bone in his left foot. At 36, the future Hall of Famer was
    having his best season since 2000, batting .271/.434/.563. His .334 EqA leads
    the Sox and ranks fifth in the American League.

    The Sox have no way of replacing Thomas’ OBP in the middle of the lineup.
    While some teams, like the Twins, have a glut of first base/DH types just
    clamoring for playing time, the Sox are thin at the right end of the defensive
    spectrum. On the major league roster, Ross Gload has been a
    replacement-level hitter so far this year, while Timo Perez
    hasn’t even been that good. Triple-A Charlotte boasts little that can be
    expected to make up for the loss of Thomas.

    Compounding the problem for the Sox is a lineup that can’t afford to lose OBP.
    Jose Uribe hasn’t been getting on base for a month now, and
    Joe Crede is quickly becoming a bust. The Sox also start
    Jose Valentin, an excellent player whose offensive value is
    in his power (.320 OBP). A team can only afford so many out makers, and the
    Sox, sans Thomas, are reaching the breaking point. They scored just 33 runs in
    the first eight games after losing Thomas, nearly a run-and-a-half a game
    below their average prior to that.

    On the same weekend that the Sox found out the extent of Thomas’ injury, the
    Twins called up Justin Morneau to be their DH. We might look
    back in October and see that the first few days after the All-Star break were
    what determined the race in the AL Central.

  • Meet the New DH, Same as the Old CF: In an effort to patch for the loss
    of Thomas, GM Kenny Williams re-acquired Carl Everett from
    the Expos in exchange for Jon Rauch and Gary
    Majewski
    . Williams had made a similar deal in ’03, picking up Everett
    from the Rangers for prospects.

    There are some key differences between the two trades. Last year Williams
    added a presumably healthy player in the middle of a strong season in exchange
    for three middling prospects. This time, he added an injured guy who is having
    a lousy year, and gave up two of his better prospects for the privilege. Rauch
    had been buried by the team in part because of an incident that occurred
    during his last call-up, but with 61 strikeouts and 25 walks in 72.1 innings
    at Triple-A, he’d shown that he was just about ready for a major league job.
    Gary Majewski, the second pitcher in the deal, might be ready
    to help a major league bullpen right now. The Sox gave up real value in this
    trade.

    In spite of that, there are reasons to believe this can work out. Because of
    Aaron Rowand‘s strong play, Everett will be asked to play
    right field–and eventually DH, when Magglio Ordonez is
    100%–rather than center. Everett has been hampered all year by shoulder,
    hamstring and ankle injuries, but is reportedly over all of them and healthy
    for the first time since last season. Everett is a strong batter from the left
    side, an important consideration for the Sox–just as it was last year–who lean
    heavily toward the right side.

    Combined with the deal that sent Jeremy Reed and
    Miguel Olivo to the Mariners for Freddy
    Garcia
    , it’s clear that Williams believes that the window on his team
    is closing. Since last summer he’s dealt away the organization’s top two prospects,
    a bunch of lesser ones, and a cheap young catcher, for short-term
    improvements. Williams’ job is likely riding on the Sox winning the division
    this season, because he’s mortgaged the future to make it happen.

  • Outstanding Performer: He gets less respect than reality television,
    but Damaso Marte has shaken off a so-so start to once again
    be one of the AL’s best left-handed relievers.

    Marte blew the save on Opening Day in Kansas City, allowing two home runs and
    a single as the Royals rallied for five runs in the ninth inning off of him
    and Billy Koch Since then, however, he’s allowed just eight
    runs in 42.2 innings, while putting up the strong peripherals–37:15
    strikeout-to-walk ratio, 574 OPS allowed–that marked him as an underrated
    contributor to a good team. He’s once again been passed over for the closer
    role, but look past the saves and you’ll see that he’s every bit as good as
    his teammate Shingo Takatsu. In a division lousy with good
    left-handed hitters, Marte is a weapon.

Oakland Athletics

  • It’s Not Just the Playoffs That Are Luck: With nominal closer
    Arthur Rhodes experiencing a variety of meltdowns, and a
    desperate need to find someone who could miss bats late in the game, Billy
    Beane once again mixed the A’s up in a multi-way trade. Beane swapped
    prospects Mark Teahen and Mike Wood to the
    Royals and received Octavio Dotel and cash from the Astros.
    The deal was effectively nothing for something for the A’s, who had no role
    for either prospect at the major league level.

    The trade has been anything but a panacea for the bullpen. Dotel allowed four
    runs in his A’s debut, blowing a 7-3 lead in an eventual 8-7 loss to the
    Giants. In 12 appearances, Dotel has an ERA of 6.59, with five saves in seven
    chances. Other than in that first game, in which he ended up pitching 2.1
    innings, Dotel has been used as a conventional closer, throwing an inning or
    less in 10 of his 11 appearances since. That’s disappointing, especially
    for a team like the A’s that should recognize the value Dotel has in
    high-leverage situations earlier in the game.

    The thing is, Dotel hasn’t pitched poorly for the A’s as much as he’s pitched
    in awful luck. His indicators–strikeout rate, strikeout-to-walk rate,
    groundball-to-flyball ratio, home-run rate–are all in line with his Astros
    numbers, and he posted a 3.12 ERA before the deal. That 6.59 ERA is driven by
    a ridiculous .500 batting average allowed on balls in play. The number seems
    even stranger when you consider that the A’s are one of the best defensive
    teams in baseball.

    No one gets pinned with a .500 BABIP (most pitchers oscillate around .290) all
    year long. To do so for even a month is a bit strange. Dotel’s seasonal line
    may be screwed up by the last few weeks, but there’s no reason to believe he’s
    not still a dominant reliever, capable both of pitching the A’s into the
    postseason and helping them get over the Division Series hump once they’re
    there. Fantasy players, consider Dotel a strong buy and start shouting
    “6.59!” at his owner in your league.

  • Stat of the Month: Pitching coach Rick Peterson, considered to be to
    the A’s success what Leo Mazzone is to that of the Braves, was hired away by
    the Mets over the winter. Has the move had a negative impact for Oakland? With substantially the
    same pitchers working for both teams over the past two years, a direct
    comparison of the staffs is instructive.

    
    K/BB ratio
           2003     2004    Change
    A's    2.04     1.91    -6.4%
    Mets   1.57     1.71   +13.2%
    
    

    You might wonder why we didn’t use ERA or RA. The Mets have improved their
    defense so much over the past year that using runs to measure improved
    pitching–usually a good idea–would skew the comparison in their favor.
    Strikeout-to-walk ratio is a better reflection of Peterson’s influence, or
    lack thereof, as he worked hard with the A’s big three to get them throwing
    strikes. It appears that he’s done the same in New York.

    Looking at the rotations he handled in ’03 and ’04 doesn’t indicate much, as
    the A’s are a mixed bag, while the Mets have seen three of their top four
    starters lose ground. The degree of change is interesting; the impact of
    Peterson on Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder and
    Tom Glavine pops from this chart.

    
    K/BB ratio
                       2003     2004    Change
    Tim Hudson         2.66     2.08    -21.8%
    Mark Mulder        3.20     2.33    -27.1%
    Rich Harden        1.68     1.92    +14.3%
    Barry Zito         1.66     1.87    +12.7%
    
    Al Leiter          1.48     1.21    -18.2%
    Tom Glavine        1.24     2.03    +63.7%
    Steve Trachsel     1.71     1.49    -12.9%
    Jae Seo            2.39     1.31    -45.2%
    
    

    That doesn’t consider Peterson’s work with the desiccated remnants of
    Ricky Bottalico (3.27 ERA, 2.00 K/BB) or the fact that he’s
    gotten good work from Orber Moreno (3.27 ERA, 2.90 K/BB) and
    Jose Parra (3.21 ERA, 2.33 K/BB).

    Better command of the strike zone has helped the Mets move to among the NL
    leaders in run prevention, and Peterson deserves some credit for that. As the
    charts above show, though, the data aren’t clear on just how much. The team
    changes in command, particularly in New York, are driven by the deltas on just
    a few players. Eyeballing the names, you might suggest that perhaps Peterson’s
    approach works best with a certain type of pitcher, perhaps ones more inclined
    to go along with the cerebral coach. That’s a bit of a stretch, of course (and
    a poor fit when considering Al Leiter‘s numbers). It may just be that this is a half-season of information, and not nearly enough on which to draw conclusions.

  • Upcoming Schedule: The A’s season won’t be decided in the next two
    weeks, but we’ll certainly see whether they’ll have to play from behind or
    ahead down the stretch. Beginning Thursday, the A’s play seven games in 11
    days against the division-leading Texas Rangers, the last of those just on the
    other side of the July 31 trade deadline, and then take a tough road trip to
    play potential October foes in the Yankees and Twins.

    Their reward for playing well in those games, if they do so, is a three-week
    vacation: the Tigers and Royals at home, then two weeks of the Orioles and
    Devil Rays. The latter two teams have been good to the A’s the past few years.
    They went 11-1 against the two in an identical stretch in 2001, a run that
    helped propel them to the Wild Card. Last year, an 8-4 run wrapped around
    Labor Day helped the A’s get control of the West.

Philadelphia Phillies

  • Down on the Farm: With a name like Ryan Howard, you
    wouldn’t expect a singles-hitting, speedy defensive outfielder. No, that’s a
    slugger’s name, the moniker of a big kid from the back country who hits it
    hard and far when he hits it, and changes weather patterns with his whiffs
    when he doesn’t.

    At 6’4″ and 230 pounds, the Phillies’ first-base prospect fulfills those
    expectations. The Phils’ #5 pick in the 2001 draft is destroying the Eastern
    League to the tune of .303/.387/.668, having blasted 35 home runs in 343
    at-bats. With six weeks to go in the Eastern League season, Howard is a near
    lock to shatter the circuit’s record of 41 bombs, set back in 1930 by…oh, come
    on, you know this…Hazelton’s Ken Strong in 1930, and tied by
    Rick Lancellotti in 1979 for Buffalo.

    Combined major league at-bats for the two record-holders? 65.

    Howard is an appropriate heir to that legacy, His prodigious power aside, he’s
    not a great prospect. Howard isn’t particularly young, 24, and he has all the
    defensive value of Ural. He strikes out a ton: once every three at-bats this year, a slight
    uptick from his rates the past two seasons. Striking out at unacceptable
    levels, and losing ground in your command of the strike zone as you move up in
    the system, are two red flags in evaluating hitting prospects. Being in
    Double-A at 24 is another.

    Howard’s greatest value to the Phillies is as trade bait. He’s never going to
    play for them, because the Phillies have the major league version, plus 80
    walks, in Jim Thome, and he’s signed though 2017 or so. The
    A’s had a similar situation with Mark Teahen, and they turned him into Octavio
    Dotel. With the Phillies locked in a tight race with three other teams, and
    with addressable weaknesses, General Manager Ed Wade has to do the same with Howard. If he
    doesn’t, and the Phillies fall short for a third straight season, it will be
    time to wonder if Wade is up to the task of finishing what he started.

  • Welcome Back: One of the notions floated about the 2004 Phillies was
    that they didn’t need any great performances to win, just solid seasons from
    their starting lineup and rotation. Had they gotten even average performance
    from third base and left field in ’03, they probably would have won the Wild
    Card going away. David Bell and Pat Burrell
    had disastrous years, though, combining for a season-and-a-half of
    replacement-level play.

    This year, both players have been assets. Bell is having perhaps his best
    season, batting .279/.364/.471 and playing a very good third base. He’s
    increased his walk rate since coming to Philadelphia, but unlike the spike we
    often see when an older player loses his bat speed, the 31-year-old Bell has
    also added power. He’s on pace for the highest slugging average and isolated
    power marks of his career.

    Burrell is still striking out at a prodigious rate, and his power isn’t where
    it was during his excellent ’02 season, but at .271/.384/.465, he, too, is
    helping the Phillies stay in the NL East race. Burrell is on a career-best pace for walks and K/BB ratio, and
    improvements in those areas indicate that Burrell is also getting himself into
    more hitters’ counts. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him locate his power
    stroke and have a monster second half, something like .300/.400/.600.

  • Fantasy Tip: Kevin Millwood‘s batting average allowed
    on balls in play is .327, well above both the league average and the team
    average. Millwood’s peripherals are good–7.57 K/9, 2.31 K/BB, a homer every
    eight innings–which means that his 4.92 ERA is more a reflection of too many
    balls falling in than of a decline. Like Burrell, he’s a player who could have
    a big second half, and with the Phillies’ strong offense, that will mean wins
    on top of good rate stats. Go get him.

Thank you for reading

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