Waiting for DePo...

[dxmachina]

Busy baseball day. The Dodgers called up two players from the minors, and trade speculation is rife as the deadline draws near. What can DePo do to top last year?

Scott Erickson was finally DFA'd today to make room for Jonathan Broxton, an hard thrower who's been tearing up AA. It's a shame about Erickson. He had a nice spring, but was mostly awful once the season began. The surprising thing is that he wasn't shown the door weeks ago. Look for the Yankees to take a long look at Scotty. The other call up was Dioner Navarro. Mike Rose, who just didn't hit, goes back to Las Vegas.

ESPN's Page 2 had a bunch of good articles over the last couple of days. Eric Neel has a good rant about about the tomfoolery that surrounds the trading deadline. There's also a two part story here and here about which players playing today may make the Hall of Fame. It can be an interesting exercise. Of course, in the case of guys early in their careers, one can be wildly wrong about these things, so choices like David Wright are likely as not wrong, and someone completely unexpected may make it. Ten years ago no one, but no one, considered Jeff Kent a candidate for the Hall.

There's a semi-interesting thing in this week's Boston/Providence Phoenix on the financial connections between the Red Sox and the Boston Globe. The cover headline screams about conflict of interest, but there's very little smoke in the article, much less fire. The Sox aren't the first team to have ownership connections with a news organization. The Cubs are owned by the Tribune Corporation, and the Dodgers used to be owned by Rupert Murdoch's Fox Corp.

Manny Ramirez has announced he wants a trade, and speculation about that possibility seems to be causing heads to explode among Red Sox nation. Manny's enormous salary means that the Mets are likely the only realistic possibility for a trade, but they seem more interested in Alfonzo Soriano, who is cheaper and younger.

The Padres finally unloaded Phil Nevin, for Chan Ho Park, of all people. All you need to know about this trade is what Eric Neel said about it a while back:

Two guys taking in a game in Arlington:

Guy one: "If you took the $30 million you're going to spend on Chan Ho Park the next two years, and the $34 million you've paid him the last three years, and gave it instead to scientists in some research lab in northern California, what do you think the chances are they just might be able to come up with an anti-aging cream we could use on [Rangers' pitching coach] Orel [Hershiser]?"

Guy two: "What if we just paid the present-day Orel and took our chances?"

Yeah, I've quoted this before, but I still think it's hilarious.

Comments

[hecubot.livejournal.com]

Aiyee! I heard they just traded Manny to the Mets. Huff and Cameron. So much for that warm fuzzy feeling from last year.

[dxmachina.livejournal.com]

That's the rumored deal, but I don't think they've pulled the trigger yet.

The thing is, Manny is complaining he has no privacy in Boston. Is he the least bit familiar with the New York media? Kee-ripes!

[veejane.livejournal.com]

That's the rumor, but Aubrey Huff and Mike Cameron aren't all that and another World Series. When Theo traded Nomar, it was because Nomar was not producing runs or stopping them from happening; although Manny is an annoying space cadet, he does produce runs (and still leads the league in outfield assists).

Jay Payton excepted, Theo doesn't trade people for being jerks.

The best part about Manny's "privacy" is that not two weeks ago the Boston Globe did a photo spread about his kid's tricked-up bedroom. Manny, hon, walk the walk if you gonna talk the talk.

[dxmachina.livejournal.com]

The rumor came from "some guy" on WEEI who claims to know a guy, so you know it must be a reliable source. You're absolutely right about Theo having little motivation to do this. Also, the Mets don't seem all that interested, either.

[dxmachina.livejournal.com]

Also, now I'm reading that Theo's got a deal in place to send Shoppach and Stern to Colorado for Larry Bigbie, who the Rockies picked up from the Orioles last night. That's one way to deal with the Rule 5 guy. Make him somebody else's problem.

[veejane.livejournal.com]

Oh, also. I think that anybody who watches NESN could tell you about the parent company relationship -- Dan Shaughnessy has a face made for radio, as they say, but he's on NESN all the time because of all the "synergy partnerships" with the Globe.

All the dudes from the Herald, the Projo, WFAN, the Eagle-Tribune -- those guys go on WEEI or UPN or Fox Sports New England, but never on NESN.

It's pretty annoying, and reduces the variety of commentary, but at least it's hugely obvious.

[dxmachina.livejournal.com]

That's pretty much the main wisp of smoke the article mentions. It's not like it's not disclosed. I mean, the name of the pre-game show is the "Boston Globe Pre-Game Show."

Dan Shaughnessy has a face made for radio

Well, yeah, but compared to Sean McAdam? The world of sportswriting is not a pretty world.